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©ESERT 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT  THROUGH 
ALGERIA  AND  TUNISIA 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

THROUGH  ALGERIA 

AND  TUNISIA 


BY 

•        *    •     •  •  •  •  >    >  I 

EMMA  BURBANK  AY^k    •    ' 


PROFUSELY  ILLUSTRATED 
FROM  PHOTOGRAPHS  BY  THE  AUTHOR 

IBCOND  IDITION 


CHICAGO 

A.  C.  McCLURG  &  CO, 

1911 


Copyright 

A.  C.  McCLURG  &  CO. 

1911 


Published  November,  1911 


.••  .•-•• 


••<•,•••.,•    I  ;.»!•*•  ••• 


9,  3f.  i^all  iprhtttns  (Hamptm^ 
(Et;ira0a 


TO  MY  HUSBAND 

Ebhiarb  £.  Ag^r 

THE     ENTHUSIASTIC     TRAVELLER 
AND     COLLECTOR 


5702U5 


CONTENTS 


Chapter  Page 

I    En  route  to  Algiers 1 

II    The   arrival  —  Sight-seeing  in  Algiers  —  The 

mosques 10 

in    Arab   cemeteries  —  The   Kasha  —  The   Jardin 
d'Essai  —  The    Governor's    summer    palace 

and  the  Museum 35 

rV    The  Peiion  —  Admiralty  —  A  visit  to  the  Old 
Town  —  A  glimpse  of  the  Archbishop 's  pal- 
ace and  the  winter  palace  of  the  Governor    .       57 
V     The  trip  to  Cherchel  and  Tombeau  de  la  Chre- 

.   tienne       74 

VI     Hammam  R'hira  and  Miliana  to  Algiers  —  By 

the  Gorge  of  the  Chiffa  and  Blida   ....      89 
VII     A  day  in  Algiers  — Then  off  to  Bou  Saada    .     100 
VIII     A  trip  to  Tlemcen  by  Mascara,  and  return; 
with  a  view  of  the  ruins  of  Tipaza  on  the 

way 122 

IX     To  Laghouat  and  the  country  of  the  Mozabites ; 
with  a  visit  to  the  cedar  forests  at  Teniet- 

el-Had  on  the  return 141 

X     A  day  of  leisure ;  then  off  by  Tizi-Ouzu  to  Fort 
National  and  Fort  Michelet  —  To  Bougie  by 

Agaza       170 

XI     A  trip  to  Djidjelli 193 

XII     Off  to  Constantine  hy^  S6tif,  and  the  Gorge  of 

Chabet-el-Akra       199 

XIII  On  the  road,  and  Constantine 202 

XIV  To  Tebessa  by  Ain-Beida 212 

[vii] 


CONTENTS 

PAGE 

XV     The  Ruins  of  Timgad 218 

XVI     Timgad   to   Batna   by   Lambessa  —  Batna   to 

Biskra       225 

XVII     A  day  in  Biskra  —  The  Landon  Garden  —  A 

visit   to   Sidi-Okba 233 

XVIII     Down  to  Touggourt  and  return 248 

XIX     Away  from  Biskra  —  A  day  of  disasters  in  the 

Desert       283 

XX     To  Tunis  by  Bone  and  La  Calle ;  with  a  visit 
to  Hammam  Meskoutine  and  to  the  ruins  of 

Bulla  Regia  and  Dougga 293 

XXI     The  '*  White  City  '' —  The  souks  and  mosques ; 

with  a  visit  to  the  Bardo  and  the  Belvedere    325 
XXII     To  Carthage  and  return  by  Ariana    ....     354 

XXIII  A  trip  to  Medenine  and  Matmata  in  the  trog- 

lodyte country  by  Sousse,  Sfax,  and  Djem    .     379 

XXIV  Back  to  Sousse  and  Monastir;  with  a  day  at 

Kairouan  and  return  to  Tunis 404 

XXV     Back  to  Tunis  —  Then  to  Algiers  by  the  Col  de 

Tirourda  and  Farewell! 426 

Index       437 


[viii] 


LIST  OF  ILLUSTRATIONS 


Page 

The  arch  of  Caracalla  at  Tebessa Frontispiece 

A  street  in  Algiers 14 

Unloading  the  car  at  Alters 14 

Minaret  of  the  Mosque  de  la  Pecherie,  Algiers    ...  15 

Pontoons  and  quay  at  Algiers 15 

The  Djama-el-Kebir,  or  the  Great  Mosque,  Algiers  ...  22 
Mohammedans   performing   their   ablutions   at   marble 
fountain  in  the  courtyard  of  the  Great  Mosque,  Al- 
giers         22 

Tomb  of  Sidi-bou-Koubrin  in  the  Arab  cemetery  of  Bel- 
court  at  Algiers 23 

The  summer  palace  of  the  Governor  of  Algiers  ...  23 

The  Arab  cemetery,  near  the  Kasha,  Algiers  ....  38 
Women   on  Friday,   in  the   Arab   cemetery,   near   the 

Kasha,  Algiers 38 

Graves  in  the  upper  terrace  of  the  Arab  cemetery  at 

Belcourt 39 

Votive  offerings  found  in  ruins  of  Roman  temples,  IMu- 

seum  of  Algiers 39 

Arched  entrance  way  of  a  tomb  at  Belcourt,  Algiers     .     .  46 

Tomb  and  fountain  in  the  Arab  cemetery  at  Belcourt  .     .  46 

The  **  Leopard  Door,'*  Algiers 62 

View  of  the  Admiralty  and  Pefion,  Algiers 62 

Minaret  of  the  Mosque  of  Sidi-Abd-er-Rahman,  Algiers  63 

Entrance  to  the  Tomb  of  Sidi-Abd-er-Rahman,  Algiers  63 

At  the  Tombeau  de  la  Chretierme 82 

[ixl 


LIST   OF   ILLUSTRATIONS 

PAGE 

Fountain  in  square  at  Cherchel,  made  up  of  Boman 

remains 83 

Moving  nomads,  on  the  desert 92 

Automobile  before  Tombeau  de  la  Chretienne,  Cherchel  92 
The  car  before  the  old  ivy-covered  minaret  used  as  a 

clock  tower,  Miliana 93 

One  of  the  nondescript  stages  of  Algeria  and  Tunisia    .  93 

Avenue  of  eucalyptus  on  the  road  to  Bou-Saada    .     .    .  108 

The  market-place  at  Bou-Saaba 108 

An  Arab  shepherd  and  his  flock,  on  the  road    ....  109 

A  field  of  asphodel 109 

A  *'  retired  "  Ouled-Nail  dancing-girl 114 

A  dancing-girl  —  Ouled-Nail  —  at  Bou-Saada    ....  114 
The  Arab  women  at  Bou-Medine:  having  their  **  pic- 
tures taken  '*  with  the  Commander 130 

Little  girls  of  Tlemcen,  in  gala  attire  on  their  fete  day  130 

Ancient  Christian  cemetery  at  Tipaza 131 

Ruins  of  the  basilica  of  St.  Salsa,  at  Tipaza    ....  131 
Entrance  to  a  tomb,  Tlemcen,  at  the  mosque  of  Bou- 
Medine  138 

Mihrab  in  mosque  of  Sidi-bel-Hassan,  Tlemcen    .     .     .  138 

The  minaret  of  Abou  Yakoub^s  mosque,  at  Mansoura     .  139 

By  the  walls  of  Mansoura 139 

Bedouin  woman  and  child 144 

Leaving  the  caravansary  of  Guelt-es-Stel 144 

The  jolly  Arab  at  the  caravansary  of  Telrempt    .     .     .  148 

The  mosque  at  Laghouat 148 

The  Soeurs  Blanches  and  their  pupils  in  a  courtyard  of 

the  school,  Ghardaia    . 149 

Market  day  in  the  public  square  at  Ghardaia    ....  149 

Mozabite  well  at  Ghardaia 158 

**  Stuck  '*  in  the  sand,  on  the  road  from  Ghardaia     .     .  158 
The   Mozabite   prayer  stone   in  the   public   square   at 

Ghardaia    .    .    ^ 159 

[x] 


LIST   OF    ILLUSTRATIONS 

PAGE 

Aissa-ben-Sliman,   the   kaid   of   Beni-Isguen,    and   his 

''council'' 159 

Cedars  of   Lebanon   at   Teniet-el-Had,   and   the   Arab 

driver 168 

Kabyle  woman  carrying  water  jar  .  .  .  ^  .  .  .  186 
An  old  Kabyle  woman  consents  to  have  her  "  picture 

taken  *' 186 

A  Kabyle  village;  in  the  Djurdjura  Mountains    .     .     .  187 

A  Kabyle  and  his  primitive  plough 187 

On  the  road  to  Djidjelli 196 

The  **  piled  up  rocks  "  on  road  to  Djidjelli  ....  196 
A  Kabyle  woman  fashioning  pottery  jars  at  Taourirt- 

Amokrane 197 

Bargaining  for  jewellery  near  a  Kabyle  village     .     .     .  197 

The  Pain  de  Sucre  in  the  gorge  of  the  Chabet-el-Akra    .  200 

In  the  gorge  of  Chabet-el-Akra 200 

Storks*  nests ;  on  the  road  to  Constantino 201 

A  Kabyle  hut,  Little  Kabylia 201 

City  of  Constantine,  showing  bridge  of  El  Kantara     .     .  204 

A  Bedouin   tent 214 

Ruins  of  the  Great  Basilica  at  Tebessa 214 

Portico  of  the  Temple  of  Minerva  at  Tebessa  ....  215 
The  entrance  gate  of  the  Great  Basilica  at  Tebessa    .     .215 

Some  columns  at  Tiragad 220 

Flower  boxes  in  a  Roman  house  at  Tim  gad 220 

The  theatre;  ruins  of  Tiragad 222 

A  street  of  ancient  Timgad  and  a  modem  chariot    .     .  222 

Arch  of  Trajan :  ruins  of  Timgad 223 

Entrance  to  the  forum  at  Timgad 223 

The   Arab  fair  at  Timgad 226 

The  praetorium  at  Lambessa 227 

In    the    Gorge    of    El    Kantara;    old    Roman    bridge, 

restored 236 

The  oasis  of  El  Kantara  and  river 236 

In  the  garden  of  Benevent :  the  parapet-wall  overlooking 

the    Desert,    Biskra 237 

[xi] 


LIST    OF    ILLUSTRATIONS 

PAGE 

Entrance  into  the  (garden  of  Count  Landon,  Biskra    .     .  237 
A  nomad  mother  and  her  babies  on  the  Desert,  road  to 

Touggourt 252 

A  nomad  family,  in  the  Desert,  on  the  road  to  Touggourt  252 
The  kaid  of  a  village  near  Mraier  poses  for  his  photo- 
graph       253 

The  Petrified  Cascades  at  Hammam  Meskoutine    .     .     .  298 
The  ''Arab  Marriage''  at  Hammam  Meskoutine  —  Petri- 
fied Cones 298 

Portico  of  Temple  of  Jupiter  and  Minerva  at  Dougga    .  318 

Corinthian  columns  of  the  Temple  to  Jupiter  at  Dougga  318 

Libyan-Punic  Mausoleum  at  Dougga 319 

Part  of  the  hemicycle  around  the  Temple  of  Celestis  at 

Dougga 319 

A  woman  of  Tunis,  of  the  lower  class 328 

Porte  de  France,  looking  from  the  Old  Town,  Tunis    .    .  328 

The  minaret  of  the  Great  Mosque  at  Tunis    ....  329 

In  a  courtyard  of  the  palace  of  Dai-el-Bey,  Tunis     .     .  329 

Minaret  of  Sidi-ben-Ahrous,   Tunis 338 

Place  Bab-Souika,  with  a  view  of  the  mosque  of  Sidi- 

Mahrez,  Tunis 338 

Bedouin  woman,  in  the  ruins  of  the  odeon  of  Carthage  356 
Buins  of  the  aqueduct  that  carried  water  to  ancient 

Carthage 357 

Punic  tombs  at  Carthage 357 

Relief  of  a  Victory  found  at   Carthage,  now  in  the 

Lavigerie  Museum,  Carthage 370 

Abundance:    relief    found    at    Carthage,    now    in    the 

Lavigerie  Museum  at  Carthage 370 

The  Cisterns  of  La  Malga,  near  Carthage 371 

Subterranean  villa  at  Bulla   Regia:   ruins  of  Roman 

times 371 

The  beautiful  priestess  of  Carthage:   cover  of  Punic 
sarcophagus,  dating  from  fourth  century,  B.  C,  in 

Lavigerie  Museum 376 


LIST   OF   ILLUSTRATIONS 

PAGB 

Two  Jewesses  in  gala  attire,  seen  at  Ariana,  near  Tunis  377 

The  Colosseum  at  Djem 384 

Interior  of  the  Colosseum  at  Djem 384 

Before  the  walls  of  Sfax 385 

A  street  in  Gabes,  on  the  road  to  Medenine     ....  390 

A  family  at  Medenine 391 

View  of  a  street  in  the  troglodyte  village  of  Matameur 

near  Medenine 391 

Market  day  at  Medenine 396 

Houses  at  Medenine 396 

Troglodyte  village  of  Matmata:  entrance  to  excavated 

dwelling 397 

Holes  opening  into  room  from  the  well  of  a  subterranean 

dwelling  of  the  troglodyte  village  of  Matmata     .     .     .  397 

A  woman  of  Matmata 400 

Little  children  in  the  well  of  a  subterranean  dwelling 

at  Matmata 400 

A  straw  hat;  worn  on  the  Desert  in  summer    ....  401 

Ploughing  with  camels 401 

Walls  of  Kasba,   Sousse 410 

Koubba  of  a  saint,  on  the  road  to  Sousse 411 

The  Grand  Mosque  of  Kairouan 420 

The  mosque  of  Sidi-Sahab,  or  the  Mosque  of  the  Barber, 

Kairouan 420 

On  the  Desert:  bargaining  for  jewellery 421 

Mosque  of  the  Swords  at  Kairouan 428 

^linaret  of  the  Great  Mosque  at  Kairouan 428 

Over  the  Col  de  Tirourda  j  just  cleared  from  snow    .    .  429 


[  xiii  1 


A  Motor  Flight  Through 
Algeria  and  Tunisia 


CHAPTER  I 

EN  ROUTE  TO  ALGIERS 

ONCE,  not  80  very  long  ago,  two  persons  —  a  man  and  his 
wife  —  decided  to  take  a  motor  trip  through  Algeria 
and  Tunisia,  in  Northern  Africa.  Their  decision  was  de- 
termined, in  a  way,  by  the  influence  which  a  report  —  made  by 
some  friends  who  had  motored  there  the  year  before  —  had 
upon  them.  These  friends  were  loud  in  their  praises  of  the 
roads,  the  excellence  of  the  hotels  in  the  large  cities,  the  variety 
and  charm  of  the  scenery,  the  fascination  of  the  people,  and 
the  Oriental  life,  as  seen  by  them  in  the  cities  and  on  the  road. 
However,  these  friends  had  gone  little,  if  any,  into  the  by- 
ways, so  had  no  information  to  give  as  to  the  smaller  towns 
and  hamlets. 

The  Commander  of  the  proposed  expedition  was  a  motorist 
of  some  years'  experience;  and  having  investigated  most  of 
the  known  routes  of  France,  Italy,  and  Sicily,  he  burned  to 
strike  off  with  his  car  into  less  well-known  countries.  He 
could  contribute  for  the  trip,  as  his  share,  the  above-men- 
tioned experiences,  a  fine  sense  of  the  cardinal  points,— 
north,  south,  east,  and  west, —  so  that  he  could  find  his  way, 
with  his  motor  car,  over  an  almost  trackless  wilderness  —  or 
wherever  it  could  be  made  to  run, —  provided  the  sun  were 
not  obscured  by  clouds.  Moreover,  he  had  some  very  good 
maps  of  Algeria  and  Tunisia,  procured  at  Paris;  a  fine  six- 
cylinder  car,  the  pride  of  his  heart;  and  lastly,  but  most 

[1] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

essential,  he  had  an  excellent  chauffeur,  born  to  his  work, — 
not  made  from  a  coachman  with  a  month 's  lessons  in  a  garage, 
but  a  chauffeur  who  felt  every  throb  of  his  engine  and  loved 
his  car  as  one  loves  a  fine  horse. 

The  Commander  believed,  not  unreasonably,  that  thus  pre- 
pared he  would  be  able  to  cope  with  the  probable  difficulties 
of  this,  to  him,  unknown  country,  about  which  he  had  been 
able  to  get  but  very  little  information,  excepting  that  which 
his  friends  who  had  made  the  trip  had  given  him. 

The  Other-one  could  add,  as  her  share,  perfect  health, 
boundless  enthusiasm,  a  modest  knowledge  of  French,  and  two 
kodaks,  a  number  3 A,  and  a  panoram. 

Thus  fortified,  our  travellers  stood,  on  a  bright  morning  in 
late  February,  upon  the  quay  at  Marseilles  and  watched  their 
car  being  loaded  on  to  the  Charles  Roux,  which  was  to  take 
them  across  the  blue  Mediterranean  to  Algiers. 

It  was  with  a  thrill  of  apprehension  that  the  Commander 
saw  his  much-prized  car  swung  up  high  in  the  air  by  the 
steam  derrick.  There  it  hung,  helpless,  between  sky  and 
water,  this  motor  which  on  land  had  seemed  so  big  and  force- 
ful, with  power,  in  unskilled  hands,  to  work  such  awful  de- 
struction. However,  they  do  the  lading  and  unlading  of 
cars  at  Marseilles  with  great  facility,  from  having  much  prac- 
tice. It  was  only  when  the  Commander  beheld  his  automobile 
carefully  and  skilfully  swung  to  a  snug  place  on  the  lower 
deck  of  the  Charles  Roux,  then  swathed  in  heavy  canvas  and 
well  secured  with  strong  ropes,  that  his  fear  subsided  and 
he  breathed  a  heavy  sigh  of  relief. 

Soon  after,  they  steamed  swiftly  and  smoothly  out  of  the 
busy  harbor  of  Marseilles,  with  its  network  of  masts,  its  mul- 
titude of  stout  smokestacks  of  the  great  liners, —  away  from 
the  smoky  city  where  the  Byzantine  domes  of  the  new  cathe- 
dral showed  at  the  left,  and,  farther  on  to  the  right,  Notre 
Dame  de  la  Garde,  the  pilgrimage  church,  dominated  all  with 
its  high  belfry  and  its  golden  statue  of  the  Madonna.  Then 
past  the  rocky  islands  of  Pomegue,  Ratonneau  at  the  right, 
and  the  cream-white  Chateau  d'lf,  made  famous  by  Dumas 

[2] 


EN   ROUTE   TO   ALGIERS 

in  his  **  Comte  de  Monte  Cristo.'*  At  the  left  the  great,  bar- 
ren, chalky  rocks  of  the  chain  of  St.  Cyr,  of  brilliant  white- 
ness, thrust  themselves  down  to  the  coast  of  Cape  Croisette. 
The  vessel  slid  past  the  little  lonely  Isle  of  Planier  with  its 
great  lighthouse ;  the  coast  line  soon  faded  out  of  sight,  and 
they  were  off  on  the  foam-flecked  waves  of  the  blue  sea  to  that 
—  to  our  couple  —  unknown  land. 

The  air  was  crisp,  and  a  fresh  wind  was  blowing,  so  the 
Other-one  ensconced  herself,  well  wrapped  up,  in  a  long  chair 
on  deck,  and,  with  the  few  books  on  Algiers  and  Tunis  which 
she  had  been  able  to  procure,  prepared  to  cram  herself 
with  as  much  information  about  those  countries  as  possible 
before  arriving  at  her  destined  port.  For  she  well  knew,  from 
pre^^ous  experience,  how  difficult  it  is  to  read  up  about  the 
country  through  which  one  is  travelling,  if  one  goes  in  a  motor 
car.  What  with  the  long  courses  by  day  and  the  consequent 
fatigue  and  sleepiness  after  the  arrival  at  night,  one  is  forced 
to  retire  early. 

Exasperated  by  not  being  able  to  find  more  than  one  or  two 
books  on  Algeria  and  Tunis, —  in  English, —  before  they 
started  on  their  trip,  the  Other-one  had  exclaimed  to  the  Com- 
mander, *  *  What  *s  the  pleasure  in  motoring  through  a  coun- 
try about  which  you  do  not  know  one  thing?  And  you 
have  n't  time,  or  you  are  too  tired  to  read  it  up  at  night,  when 
you  are  travelling!  ** 

**  Well,  as  for  me,*'  answered  he,  **  if  I  can't  read  up,  and 
do  not  know  much  about  the  country  through  which  I  am 
automobiling,  I  am  content  to  be  going  on  good  roads  with  a 
beautiful  panorama  of  hills,  mountains,  and  sea,  unfolding 
before  me ;  with  the  sight  of  the  curious  people  on  the  road ; 
the  fresh,  pure  air  blowing  in  my  face,  and  the  throbbing  of 
a  fine  engine  under  me." 

The  Other-one  shrugged  her  shoulders  and  said  no  more; 
but  she  knew  the  Commander  always  kept  his  ears  open,  as 
well  as  his  eyes,  and  that  he  had  a  way  of  extracting  informa- 
tion, when  travelling,  from  the  people  he  met  and  from  the 
observation  of  all  that  passed  before  him,  so  that  its  value 

[3] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

was  much  more,  aesthetically  as  well  as  practically,  than  any 
amount  of  read-up  knowledge. 

Now,  as  she  opened  her  book  and  turned  the  pages  to  read 
the  history  of  Algiers,  she  heard  a  familiar  voice  near  her 
asking,  *  *  And  the  roads  in  Algeria,  are  they  as  good  as  I 
have  been  told  they  are  ?  * ' 

She  looked  up  to  see  the  Commander  leaning  on  the  rail 
and  looking  eagerly  into  the  face  of  a  tall,  sunburnt  man  with 
a  bristling  white  mustache,  and  a  motoring  coat  and  cap,  who 
stood  near  him. 

*  *  Roads !  My  dear  sir,  they  are  the  best  in  the  world,  supe- 
rior even  to  the  national  roads  in  France !  ' '  and  the  stranger 
carefully  knocked  off  the  ashes  from  the  end  of  the  big  cigar 
he  was  smoking.  **  I  have  motored  some  months  all  through 
both  Algeria  and  Tunisia,  and  know  about  what  I  state.  As 
an  example  of  what  the  French  have  done,  they  have  con- 
nected the  sea-coast  towns  of  Bougie  and  Djidjelli  by  a  road 
cut  right  out  of  the  cliffs,  forming,  perhaps,  the  most  wonder- 
ful corniche  in  the  world.  And  it  should  be  noted  that  the 
total  number  of  inhabitants  of  these  two  towns  is  less  than 
forty  thousand.  There  are  thousands  of  miles  of  roads  in 
Algeria  and  Tunis,  marked  every  ten  miles  with  a  stone  and 
at  every  cross  road  with  a  guide  post,  right  out  into  the 
desert.  All  these  roads  are  magnificently  built,  straight  and 
smooth  as  a  billiard  table.  Not  only  are  the  main  cities  con- 
nected by  broad  highways,  wonderfully  graded  and  drained, 
with  tunnels  when  necessary,  and  covered  ways  through  the 
mountains,  that  would  do  credit  to  the  best  railway  system 
in  America,  but  even  the  remote  mountains  are  networks  of 
skilfully  surveyed  bridle  paths  connecting  the  main  roads  for 
mules,  donkeys,  or  camels.  I  rode  over  hundreds  of  miles  of 
these  roads.  Probably  nine-tenths  of  them  were  better  laid 
than  Pennsylvania  Avenue  in  Washington,  or  the  Avenue 
de  rOpera  in  Paris.'' 

*  *  How  are  the  roads  constructed  ?  ' '  asked  the  Com- 
mander, straightening  up  in  his  interest. 

' '  A  road, ' '  answered  the  stranger,  ' '  is  filled  to  a  depth  of 

[4] 


EN   ROUTE   TO   ALGIERS 

fifteen  centimetres  with  crushed  rock  and  sand  wetted 
through,  and  thoroughly  rolled.  Then  a  layer  of  the  same, 
one  centimetre  deep,  is  added  and  rolled.  Then  it  is  covered 
with  a  coating  of  sand.  No  tar  or  other  chemical  combination 
ever  enters  into  the  construction  of  Algerian  roads. ' ' 

* '  What  do  they  cost  a  mile  ?  '  ^  answered  the  practical 
Commander. 

**  They  cost,  for  national  roads,  about  twenty-five  to  forty 
thousand  francs  a  kilometre:  a  kilometre,  you  know,  is  five- 
eighths  of  a  mile.  For  the  maintenance  of  the  roads  each 
native  is  taxed  three  days*  work  every  year,  or,  if  he  prefers, 
he  may  pay  the  equivalent  in  money.**  The  Motorist  yawned 
slightly,  threw  his  cigar  away,  and  walked  off  down  the  deck, 
the  Commander  following  closely.  These  words  floated  back 
to  the  Other-one. 

**  We  Americans  should  take  a  lesson  from  Algeria.  The 
roads  of  America  are  a  disgrace  to  the  nation.  In  fact  the 
majority  of  them  are  not  roads ;  they  are  merely  strips  of  laud 
between  two  fences,  passable  only  in  dry  weather.** 

The  Other-one  turned  to  her  books,  which  she  had  laid  aside 
in  her  interest  in  the  stranger's  talk,  and  began  again  to  pore 
ov.  r  thrin.  Tliis  is.  ])i  I,  f]\ .  what  she  gleaned  from  them  con- 
cerning the  country  she  was  about  to  visit. 

The  Kabyles,  the  earliest  historical  inhabitants,  now  inhabit 
the  mountains  of  Algeria.  North  Africa  was  conquered  suc- 
cessively by  the  Romans,  the  Vandals,  the  Byzantine  Greeks, 
and  lastly  by  the  Arabs.  These  people  invaded  North  Africa 
at  the  beginning  of  the  eighth  century  and  established  Islam- 
ism  all  over  it.  Ferdinand  the  Catholic,  after  driving  the 
Moors  from  Spain, —  who  established  themselves  in  North 
Africa  and  carried  on  a  piratical  warfare, —  sent  an  expedi- 
tion and  took  some  of  the  cities  on  the  coast.  The  Moors 
called  in  the  aid  of  two  brothers, —  Turkish  corsairs, —  who 
vanquished  the  Spaniards  and  claimed  the  city  of  Algiers  for 
themselves.  The  Algerines  carried  on  a  fiercer  piratical  war- 
fare than  ever,  so  that  all  the  nations  of  Europe  began  to 
send  expeditions,   with  varying  success,   against  them.     In 

[61 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

1815  the  Algerine  Power  was  cheeked  in  its  lawless  career  by 
the  United  States,  who  compelled  the  Dey  to  make  a  treaty 
with  the  Americans.  In  1816  a  British  and  Dutch  squadron 
put  an  end  to  Christian  slavery  by  bombarding  and  destroy- 
ing the  forts,  the  fleet,  and  part  of  the  city  of  Algiers  and 
brought  the  Dey  to  terms.  Eleven  years  later,  an  insult 
offered  to  the  French  Consul  caused  the  French  Government 
to  take  possession  of  the  town,  the  fleet,  and  the  treasury ;  and 
now  a  state  of  tranquillity  and  peace  has  been  reached  under 
French  rule. 

**  I  should  hope  so,  surely!*'  exclaimed  the  Other-one, 
audibly  yawning.    *'  This  history  is  dry  bones  enough.'* 

*'  I  beg  pardon,  did  you  speak?  "  asked  a  lady  in  the  deck 
chair  next  to  the  Other-one.  She  was  plump  and  rosy  and 
unmistakably  English,  as  her  dress  and  voice  plainly  in- 
dicated. 

**  It  was  nothing,"  answered  the  Other-one.  '^  I  was  simply 
reflecting  to  myself  on  the  dulness  of  historical  facts,  espe- 
cially when  one  does  not  know  the  country  about  which  the 
facts  are  given." 

*  *  You  are  going  to  Algiers  ?  ' '  questioned  the  lady. 

**  I  could  not  be  going  anywhere  else,  very  well,  on  this 
boat.  My  husband  and  I  expect  to  take  a  motor  trip  through 
Algeria,  and  I  know  nothing  about  that  country,  but  am 
trying  to  read  up  a  little  about  it. ' ' 

**You  will  find  it  most  interesting,  that  is,  the  city  of 
Algiers,  where  I  have  passed  some  seven  winters;  but  I  am 
not  much  acquainted  with  the  country  outside.  However, 
I  fancy  I  can  give  you  some  advice  in  regard  to  what  you 
should  see  in  the  city.  You  will  be  staying  there  some 
weeks?  " 

*  *  Probably  not  more  than  three  or  four  days,  at  the  most ; 
we  expect  to  do  the  entire  country  in  a  few  weeks,"  replied 
our  Motorist. 

'*  Oh,  you  Americans!"  exclaimed  the  English  lady. 
**  It 's  most  extraordinary  how  you  do  run  about  in  your 
motor  cars.    It  must  be  very  tiresome !  " 

[6] 


EN  ROUTE   TO  ALGIERS 

'*  Well,  that  depends  on  the  point  of  view.  But  please  tell 
me  where  we  ought  to  go  first,  and  what  we  ought  to  do  in 
Algiers, — the  most  important  things,  I  mean,  or  those  most 
interesting." 

The  lady  reflected  a  few  moments  before  replying.  '  *  Well, 
I  fancy  some  of  the  most  interesting  places  for  you  to  visit 
would  be  the  Arab  cemeteries  on  Friday,  the  Mohammedan 
Sabbath,  where  you  would  see  many  women.  They  make  the 
visits  to  the  cemetery  a  sort  of  picnic,  unveiling  there  —  for 
no  man  is  allowed  there  on  Friday.  The  day  after  to-morrow 
will  be  Friday.  You  should  make  it  a  point  to  go  to  the  ceme- 
teries then.  There  is  one  near  the  civil  prison,  up  near  the 
Kasba,  the  ancient  palace  of  the  deys,  you  know.  It  is  a  more 
common  cepietery,  for  the  poorer  women,  but  the  one  at  Bel- 
court,  near  the  Jardin  d'Essai,  or  Botanical  Gardens,  is  the 
more  aristocratic  and  is  where  many  of  the  wealthy  Arabs 
are  buried.  You  might  visit  the  two  in  one  day,  combining 
the  first  with  a  visit  to  the  Kasba,  you  know,  but  you  would 
have  to  go  early  if  you  wished  to  see  the  crowd  of  women. 
I  fancy  in  these  places  you  would  get  a  better  idea  of  the 
Arab  women  and  what  their  lives  are.  By  the  way,  you 
cannot  take  your  husband,  you  know.*' 

The  Other-one  thought  of  how  many  times  she  had  been 
shut  out  of  chapels  and  monasteries  during  their  travels 
before,  while  the  Commander  was  allowed  to  enter;  and  of 
his  provoking  joy  thereat.  Now,  the  tables  would  be  turned. 
She  might  go  into  the  Arab  cemeteries  on  Friday,  but  he 
could  not.    It  would  be  her  chance  to  rejoice. 

**  Let  me  think  a  moment!'*  said  the  English  woman. 
**  There  is  so  much  to  see,  though  some  of  your  travelled  coun- 
trymen declare  there  is  nothing  of  any  interest  in  the  city. 
I  have  never  exhausted  all  the  places  in  my  seven  winters' 
sojourn.  There  are  the  Kasba,  the  Mosques  of  el  Djama-el- 
Djedid  and  the  Djama-el-Kebir,  the  Mosque  tomb  of  Sidi- 
Abd-er-Rahman — " 

*  *  Please  stop !  ' '  cried  the  Other-one,  *  *  and  let  me  write 
down  the  names  of  them ;  I  shall  never  remember  them  other- 

f7] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

wise.  And  please  spell  them !  ' '  Then  with  pencil  and  paper 
she  followed. 

*'  There  is  also  the  Mosque  of  the  Pecherie  down  by  the 
sea,  on  the  Place  du  Gouvernement.  It  has  a  beautifully 
illuminated  Koran.  Then  you  must  see  the  Old  Town,  with 
its  crooked  streets,  descending  to  the  New  Town,  and  its 
Oriental  life.  It  is  of  course  very  unclean,  but  most  interest- 
ing. Then  there  are  in  the  New  Town,  the  beautiful  Moorish 
house  of  the  Admiralty;  the  palaces  of  the  French  Com- 
mander and  of  the  Archbishop;  the  Peiion,  or  island  where 
the  lighthouse  is;  the  cathedral;  the  exquisite  summer  palace 
of  the  French  Commander  at  Mustapha  Superieur;  the  fine 
museum  also  at  Mustapha;  the  Jardin  d'Essai, —  you  must 
not  forget  to  go  there,  where  you  will  see  the  most  wonderful 
tropical  plants.  In  the  city,  too,  you  must  see  the  Oriental 
life  in  the  squares,  the  Place  du  Gouvernement,  and  the  Place 
de  la  Eepublique.  You  must  go  through  the  fashionable 
streets  of  the  Rue  Bab  Azoun  where  all  the  pretty  French 
shops  are,  and  the  Rue  Bab-el-Oued  with  interesting  native 
shops.  These  streets  run  in  opposite  directions  from  the 
Place  du  Gouvernement.  Then  if  you  go  up  to  the  Jardin 
Marengo,  you  will  see  such  lovely  palm-trees,  and  get  most 
charming  views  of  the  sea. ' ' 

The  English  woman  had  spoken  eagerly  and  rapidly.  She 
now  paused  for  breath. 

*  *  Thank  you !  Thank  you  so  much !  ' '  said  the  Other-one, 
seizing  the  opportunity  to  break  in,  ' '  but  I  think  that  will 
be  enough  now.  I  doubt  if  I  shall  find  time  to  see  them  all, 
but  I  certainly  will  try  to  get  to  some  of  them  during  the 
short  time  I  shall  have  in  Algiers.     Thank  you  again !  '  * 

*'  Don't  mention  it!  ''  said  the  English  lady.  The  Other- 
one  rose  to  join  the  Commander,  whom  she  saw  approaching, 
apparently  bursting  with  information  which  he  was  longing 
to  impart  to  her,  judging  from  his  speaking  face.  On  his 
travels  the  Commander  could  imbibe  information  with  joy, 
but  he  was  especially  happy  in  giving  it  out  to  others. 

Late  that  afternoon,  as  our  motorists  stood  looking  off  over 

[8] 


EN  ROUTE   TO  ALGIERS 

the  deep  blue  of  the  sea,  a  bank  of  luminous  gray  clouds  on 
the  horizon  held  the  setting  sun  in  its  embrace,  but  a 
long,  glittering  line  on  the  water's  edge  pointed,  like  a  silver 
arrow,  to  the  south,  where  lay  the  destined  port  of  our 
voyagers. 

**  I  hope  it  is  a  good  omen,'*  said  one,  **  and  that  we  shall 
find  there  joy  and  peace  and  the  good  roads  that  make  an 
automobilist 's  heaven!  *' 


[9] 


CHAPTER  II 

THE  ARRIVAL SIGHT-SEEING    IN   ALGIERS  —  THE   MOSQUES 

ABOUT  noon  of  the  next  day  the  green  hills  and  misty 
outlines  of  the  mountains  of  *  *  the  promised  land  '  *  rose 
out  of  the  water  and  showed  against  a  pale  blue  sky  flecked 
with  soft  clouds.  The  steamer  moved  slowly  into  the  harbor, 
past  great  liners  with  their  big  smoke  stacks  and  streaming 
multi-colored  flags,  past  freighting  vessels  whose  course  was 
**  run  from  lands  of  snow  to  lands  of  sun,*'  past  coal  barges 
with  black  imps  clinging  to  them,  past  smaller  craft  of  various 
kinds.  The  sparkling  blue-green  water  seemed  alive  with 
boats,  their  reflections  broken  into  shimmering  bits.  It  was 
a  thrilling  sight  to  see  the  hazy  purple  mountains  at  the 
left  with  peaks  beyond  tipped  with  snow  that  glistened  like 
silver,  above  a  long  point  of  land  curving  from  the  distance 
to  rise  in  a  series  of  green  hills,  dotted  with  white  houses  on 
one  side  while,  on  the  other,  a  white  village  was  apparently 
slipping  off  a  point  of  land  into  the  sea.  Near  by  was  a  green 
hill  crowned  with  a  white  church  having  a  great  Byzantine 
dome.  From  this  a  fringe  of  emerald  hills  extended  around 
to  join  those  which  dropped  to  the  sea  on  the  left;  between 
these  the  city  of  Algiers  rose  in  terraces  of  white  marble  houses 
to  the  fringe  of  hills  above,  a  white  minaret  of  a  domed 
mosque,  down  by  the  quay  on  one  side,  a  garden  of  tall  palm- 
trees  giving  the  Oriental  touch,  on  the  other.  Under  all 
the  white  city,  a  long  series  of  high  arches  seemed  to  hold 
it  up  from  sliding  down  into  the  sea. 

The  Other-one  turned  to  the  Commander,  who  stood  with 
her  gazing  at  the  soul-stirring  picture,  and  broke  into  exclama- 
tions of  delight.  He  soon  left  her  to  her  enthusiasms,  while 
he  went  to   hunt  up   Adrian   and  see   what   arrangements 

[10] 


THE  ARRIVAL 

were  to  be  made  to  get  the  car  unloaded  as  soon  as  possible. 
The  Other-one  was  longing  to  express  to  some  one  her  pleasure 
in  the  scene  and  she  turned  and  saw  standing  near  her  the 
kind  English  woman,  who  beamed  as  she  exclaimed  in  her 
soft,  throaty  tones,  **  Most  beautiful,  is  it  not!  **  The  Other- 
one  was  conscious  of  her  own  high-pitched  American  voice 
when  she  replied,  *  *  It  is  glorious !  *  * 

The  English  lady  asked,  **  Have  you  ever  heard  the  Arab 
saying,  *  Algiers  is  like  a  diamond  set  in  an  emerald  frame  *  ? 
Very  poetical,  is  it  not?  Do  you  notice  that  church  with  the 
dome,  high  on  the  green  hill  above  the  white  village  on  the 
shore — which  is  St.  Eugene  on  Pointe  Pescade, —  and  Cape 
Caxine  running  out  into  the  sea?  Well,  that  hill,  or  series 
of  hills  above,  is  Bouzarea,  and  the  church  is  the  Notre  Dame 
d'Afrique.  It  is  especially  attended  by  the  sailors  of  Algiers 
for  the  worship  of  the  Virgin,  and  it  was  consecrated  by  the 
late  Cardinal  Lavigerie.  Do  you  know  of  his  work  in 
Africa?^' 

**  I  know  nothing  about  Africa,'*  sighed  the  Other-one. 

The  English  woman  continued  unheeding.  **  There  is  a 
very  touching  ceremony  that  takes  place  there  at  half-after 
three  every  Sunday,  don't  you  know.  It  is  performed  by 
the  officiating  priest  on  a  high  point  of  land  which  overlooks 
the  sea.  It  is  the  blessing  of  the  sea  for  the  souls  of  sailors 
who  have  perished  in  storms." 

The  steamer  now  was  slipping  in  between  the  jetties  that 
ran  out  on  each  side  to  form  the  harbor. 

**  What  are  those  great  misty  mountains  rising  to  the  sky, 
so  gloriously  grand  in  outline  and  color  T  Are  they  the 
Atlas?" 

**  Yes!  And  you  are  most  fortunate  to  have  it  clear  enough 
to  see  them.  Those  snow-capped  points  rise  from  the  Djurd- 
jura  or  mountains  of  Great  Kabylia,  which  is  where  that  most 
independent  tribe  of  the  Kabyles  live,  don't  you  know." 

**  Oh,  yes!  I  did  read  a  little  about  them  last  evening  — 
a  most  interesting  and  curious  tribe. ' ' 

The  Other-one  looked  with  a  thrill  at  the  soft  blue  moun- 

[11] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

tains,  silver-topped  and  mottled  with  cloud  shadows.  '  *  Oh ! 
1  wonder  what  adventures  we  are  to  have  on  these  grand 
heights!  "  she  said  to  herself. 

The  Charles  Roiix  now  came  near  the  pontoon  where  she 
was  to  discharge  her  cargo  of  human  beings  and  merchandise. 
The  big  cables  were  made  fast  to  it,  and  guides  and  porters 
began  to  rush  up.  Algiers  now  showed  in  a  white  mass  of 
buildings  rising  to  the  sky  line.  The  green  hills  above  them, 
seen  from  the  sea  before,  had  disappeared.  The  English 
woman  turned  to  bargain  with  a  porter  in  scarlet  fez,  a  long 
white  coat  bound  at  the  waist  with  a  scarlet  sash,  and  bare 
brown  feet  thrust  into  heelless  yellow  slippers.  The  bargain 
concluded,  he  loaded  himself  with  her  luggage  and  disap- 
peared from  view  under  his  burden  of  bags,  umbrellas,  shawl 
strap,  tea  basket,  and  what  not. 

*' You  have  been  so  kind,"  murmured  the  Other-one  to 
her  fellow-traveller,  *'  and  have  given  me  so  much  informa- 
tion about  Algiers.     Thank  you  a  thousand  times!  " 

*'  Don't  mention  it,"  returned  the  English  woman.  **  I 
fancy  you  will  enjoy  Algiers  more  from  knowing  a  little 
about  it  beforehand;  but  really  it's  very  extraordinary  how 
you  Americans  do  trot  about!*'  and  she  hurried  off,  the 
porter  trailing  laboriously  behind  with  his  mountain  of 
luggage. 

The  Other-one  now  set  about  using  her  kodak,  which,  in 
the  excitement  of  getting  into  port,  she  had  almost  forgotten. 
She  had  only  snapped  up  a  view  or  two  when  she  heard  a 
familiar  whistle.  Rushing  to  the  rail  and  looking  down  on 
the  pier,  she  saw  the  Commander  looking  somewhat  disturbed. 

*  *  Hurry  up !  "  he  exclaimed.  *  *  You  are  the  last  one  to 
land.  We  can't  get  our  car  for  an  hour  or  so.  Let  us  go 
to  the  hotel  and  see  what  rooms  they  have  reserved  for  us." 

She  hastened  to  obey  and  descended  into  a  most  unsavory 
crowd,  with  no  claims  to  Oriental  picturesqueness  except 
that  some  of  the  porters  had  red  fezes  and  gay  sashes.  Most 
of  the  crowd  of  passengers  had  melted  away  and  the  shore 
hands  and   gamins  remaining   looked   as  though   they  had 

[12] 


THE  ARRIVAL 

selected  their  soiled  garments  from  a  rag-bag.  There  were 
bundles,  boxes,  great  bales  of  goods,  and  on  the  quays  one 
could  see  big  mountains  of  barrels  and  enormous  piles  of 
merchandise  covered  with  canvas  and  resembling  huge  ele- 
phants, waiting  to  be  shipped. 

As  the  Commander  and  the  Lady  picked  their  way  along, 
followed  by  various  sodden  men  and  boys  who  greatly 
desired  to  help  with  the  baggage  or  to  sell  them  postal  cards, 
the  Other-one  thought,  *  *  Oh,  I  am  not  going  to  like  it  here ! 
It's  not  at  all  Oriental/* 

*  *  Too  bad !  *  exclaimed  the  Commander.  '  *  We  can 't  get 
into  that  perfect  hotel  about  which  the  W — s  told  us, —  the 
one  at  Mustapha.  It  *s  full  to  the  roof.  Possibly,  in  two 
days,  the  manager  thought,  he  might  give  us  rooms.  He 
has  had  rooms  reserved  for  us  at  a  hotel  down  in  the  city  — 
and  I  wrote  so  long  ago!  '* 

They  came  out  now  to  where  there  were  two  or  three 
battered  carriages  hitched  to  weary-looking  horses,  and  the 
travellers  selected  the  least  unpromising  of  the  vehicles 
there.  The  horses  crawled  slowly  up  the  rampe  built  upon 
the  great  arches  which  had  been  so  conspicuous  from  the 
sea  and  came  up  to  the  wide  Boulevard  de  la  Republique, 
which  is  bordered  on  one  side  by  great,  ugly,  staring  busi- 
ness buildings,  and  on  the  other,  by  a  low  balustrade  of 
iron,  overlooking  the  harbor  and  sea.  By  this  lounged,  or 
leaned  over  the  rail,  a  crowd  seemingly  composed  of  all 
nationalities  and  of  varied  dress.  The  dull  grays,  blacks, 
and  browns  of  the  Europeans  were  leavened  with  the  pic- 
turesque costumes  of  the  Arabs  and  Moors,  the  Jews  and 
soldiers.  It  was  coming  up  into  another  world  from  the 
quays. 

**  Let  us  get  out,'*  said  the  Other-one,  **  and  see  what  they 
are  all  gazing  at  and  look  at  some  of  the  Oriental  dress.** 

The  driver  was  only  too  glad  to  rein  up  his  aged  beasts. 
The  view  was  certainly  entrancing,  with  the  sparkling  blue 
sea,  the  busy  habor,  the  white  lighthouse,  the  inner  harbor 
with  all  its  small  craft  at  anchor.     A  great  liner  was  pre- 

[13] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

paring  to  depart,  and  others  were  taking  on  coal  from  barges 
anchored  near,  on  which  black  imps  seemed  to  be  performing 
strange  rites.  Some  small  vessels  with  red  lateen  sails  were 
flying  in  and  out,  and  tugs  bustled  about  with  important 
tootings.  Down  on  the  quays  they  were  loading  flat  boats 
with  barrels  and  boxes,  and  great  freight-wagons  hitched 
to  patient-looking  horses  were  discharging  their  loads  or 
taking  on  others.  All  was  fascinating,  animated,  busy, 
and  vivacious. 

As  the  Other-one  scanned  the  crowd  of  idlers,  she  saw  two 
groups  near  her  that  gave  her  a  thrill,  so  truly  Oriental 
were  they  in  dress.  At  one  side,  two  tall,  grave,  splendid- 
looking  men  were  standing,  looking  off  to  the  brilliant  sea. 
They  had  dark,  fateful-looking  eyes,  skin  the  color  of  pale 
bronze,  faces  full  of  passion  and  character.  They  seemed 
to  hold  within  their  ken  all  the  secrets  of  the  past  and  of 
the  future.  Their  strikingly  beautiful  costumes  filled  the 
Other-one  *s  soul  with  delight.  They  had  on  gandouras,  a 
kind  of  long  gown,  of  white  woollen  material  striped  with 
silk.  Wide  sashes  of  bright  color  bound  the  waist.  A  long 
stripe  of  woollen  gauze  covered  the  red  felt  fez,  hanging 
down  at  the  sides  to  the  shoulders  and  bound  round  the 
head  by  a  rope  of  camel's  hair.  This  head-covering  is 
called  a  hdik.  One  wore  a  white  burnous  of  wool,  and  yet 
over  this  a  top  burnous  of  soft  blue  and  of  fine  woollen  cloth. 
The  other  had  the  dress  similar  to  the  first  but  his  fine  wool 
burnous  was  of  a  pale  gray.  Both  wore  short  white  hose  and 
brilliant  yellow  slippers. 

The  other  group,  though  not  so  well  clad  as  the  patriarchal- 
looking  one,  was  also  soul-satisfying  and  picturesque;  it 
consisted  of  two  women  and  a  man.  His  haik  was  also  bound 
around  the  red  fez  with  a  camel's-hair  rope,  but  much  frayed. 
Over  his  gown  of  thin  cotton  he  wore  his  burnous,  which 
was  coffee-colored  from  dirt.  His  long,  brown,  thin  legs 
showed  below;  his  feet  were  thrust  into  heelless,  shabby, 
red  slippers.  He  was  talking  in  guttural  tones  and  shaking 
his  fist  at  the  older  of  the  two  women,  who  were  arrayed 

[14] 


A  8TBEET   IN   ALGIERS 


UNLOADING  THE  CAR  AT  ALGIERS 


MINARET  OF  THE  MOSQUE  DE  LA 
PECHERIE,  ALGIERS 


PONTOONS  AND  QUAY  AT  ALGIERS 


THE  ARRIVAL 

alike  in  voluminous  white  hdiks.  Huge  baggy  trousers  envel- 
oped their  limbs  to  their  ankles.  They  were  veiled  to  the 
eyes,  and  held  their  mantles  well  drawn  over  their  heads; 
with  all,  they  looked  like  huge  awkward  birds  about  to  flap 
their  wings  and  fly  off.  **  They  are  certainly  Oriental,  but 
not  picturesque,'*  thought  the  Other-one.  The  ugly-looking 
Arab  appeared  to  be  in  such  ill-humor  and  gesticulated  so 
violently,  she  concluded  he  must  be  scolding  the  older  and 
plainer  of  the  two — probably  his  wives.  The  younger  and 
prettier,  judging  by  her  brilliant  black  eyes  and  her  white 
unwrinkled  forehead  seen  across  the  veil,  paid  very  little 
attention  to  them,  but  occupied  herself  in  jerking,  at  inter- 
vals, a  small  boy  in  a  dirty  skull-cap  and  single  long  gar- 
ment of  soiled  white  cotton,  who  leaped  around  and  pulled 
at  her  baggy  trousers,  a  veritable  imp. 

The  Other-one  turned  to  call  the  Commander's  attention 
to  these  fascinating  groups,  but  she  saw  him  at  a  little 
distance  talking  eagerly  to  a  short,  thick-set  man  with  a 
bright  and  alert  face.  So  she  waited,  glad  to  have  the  time 
to  watch  the  interesting  people  wlio  passed  her,  or  who  made 
some  of  the  groups  of  loungers  looking  down  on  the  busy 
port  like  the  first  group.  There  were  other  grave  and  dig- 
nified Arabs  in  burnouses  of  creamy  tints,  or  of  rich  soft 
coloring,  others  in  ragged  and  more  or  less  dirty  ones;  but 
no  matter  how  ragged  or  how  unclean  these  Orientals  were, 
they  were  always  satisfyingly  picturesque,  contrasted  with 
the  Europeans,  who  were  so  sodden  and  decayed-looking 
when  their  clothes  were  worn  and  soiled,  and  their  dress 
was  so  grievously  ugly  when  new.  It  was  a  constantly 
shifting  panorama  of  figures,  more  or  less  Oriental,  through 
which  the  street  cars  on  the  Boulevard  clanged  with  a  mod- 
em and  persistent  monotony.  Languid,  weary,  or  alert  and 
enthusiastic  tourists  and  the  French  residents,  with  an  impor- 
tant air  of  bustling  proprietorship,  moved  by  with  the  pass- 
ing throng  or  lingered  with  the  loungers. 

The  Commander  climbed  into  the  ark,  the  driver  urged  on 
his   sorry    horses,   and    soon   they    came   to   the    Place    du 

[15] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

Gouvernement,  the  heart  of  the  French  town,  a  noisy, 
bustling,  animated  square.  It  is  dominated  by  the  Mosque  of 
the  Pecherie,  with  its  large  central  dome,  high  square 
minaret,  and  clock.  The  mosque  is  as  lustrously  white  as 
marble.  The  Arabs  have  a  mania  for  whitewash,  and  cover 
all  their  mosques  and  houses  with  it.  It  must  be  said,  their 
towns  look  at  a  distance  as  if  built  of  marble.  Here  in  the 
square  is  the  modern,  indifferent,  bronze  equestrian  statue  of 
the  Due  d  'Orleans.  Three  sides  of  the  square  are  surrounded 
by  buildings  and  arcades.  Here  are  the  principal  hotels 
of  the  town.  The  street  cars  arrive  and  depart  from  here 
and  add  their  rumbling  and  the  jingling  of  their  bells  to 
the  cries  of  the  venders  of  sweetmeats,  Kabyle  rugs  and 
jewellery,  stuffed  alligators,  and  everything  else  salable  under 
the  sun.  Also  the  general  tumult  is  pierced  by  the  yells  of 
the  small  Arab  bootblacks  who  haunt  the  place,  and  the 
shrill  cries  of  newspaper-selling  gamins;  the  donkeys  add 
to  the  pandemonium  their  braying,  with  the  guttural  howls 
of  their  riders  or  drivers.  All  is  confusion,  animation, 
movement,  tumult. 

The  cafes  on  the  south  and  west  sides  overflow  under  the 
arcades  into  the  street  itself,  with  white  marble  or  painted 
small  tables.  At  them  sit  all  sorts  and  kinds  of  humanity, 
from  the  grave  and  patriarchal  chiefs,  or  sheiks,  and  the 
Arabs  of  the  better  class,  with  their  snow-white  hdiks  and 
colored  or  creamy  burnouses,  sipping  dreamily  their  Turk- 
ish coffee  and  smoking  cigarettes.  There  is  the  thin  and  wiry 
Frenchman  with  his  pointed  beard,  imbibing  his  absinthe. 
The  gorgeous  officers  in  blue  coats,  scarlet  breeches,  and 
much  braid,  with  their  fierce  mustaches  turned  sharply 
up,  quaff  beer  and  ogle  the  passing  female,  if  she  is  young 
and  pretty.  A  row  of  trees  runs  around  two  sides  of  the 
square,  and  casts  a  grateful  shade  on  the  sidewalks  when  in 
foliage,  while  the  west  side  has  a  row  of  tall,  graceful  palms, 
under  which  are  stands  and  booths  of  gay  flowers.  The 
driver  reined  in  his  steeds  at  a  hotel  on  this  side,  and  the 
Commander  and  the  Lady  alighted.     Red-fezzed  porters  ran 

[16] 


THE  ARRIVAL 

out  for  their  baggage,  while  the  Commander  settled  with  the 
driver,  who  demanded  a  fee  out  of  proportion  to  the  short 
distance  he  had  come.  **  Moral,**  said  the  Other-one  to  her 
lord,  * '  always  make  a  bargain  with  your  driver  before 
starting.  *  * 

At  luncheon  at  noon,  as  the  Commander  unfolded  his 
napkin  preparatory  to  attacking  the  appetizing  hors  d'oeuvre, 
of  pink  shrimp,  scarlet  tomatoes,  crimson  radishes,  and 
pale  brown  strips  of  anchovies,  which  a  melancholy  waiter 
in  a  stained  dress-suit  had  placed  before  them,  he  said: 
*'  Did  you  notice  the  man  who  was  talking  to  me,  when 
we  stopped  to  look  down  on  the  harbor?  Well,  he  is  an 
Englishman  who  has  been  here  on  business  for  some  time. 
He  is  very  intelligent,  and  knows  and  likes  this  country 
very  well.  He  gave  me  some  valuable  information  in  regard 
to  motoring  and  also  about  other  matters.  He  tells  me 
that  the  natural  divisions  of  Algeria  are  the  Tell,  the  High 
Plateaux,  and  the  Sahara  Desert.  The  Tell  is  the  narrow, 
cultivated  strip  of  land  between  the  seashore  and  the  moun- 
tains. It  is  hundreds  of  miles  in  length  and  thirty  to  a 
hundred  miles  in  width.  There  are  three  great  plains 
enclosed  in  the  ridges  of  the  Atlas  Mountains, —  the  Plain  of 
the  Chelif  River,  the  Plain  called  the  Mitidja,  and  the  Plain 
of  the  Sahel.  The  Tell  is  well  watered  by  important  rivers. 
The  rich  agricultural  land  is  intersected  by  small  mountains 
and  valleys  thickly  wooded.  He  says  we  will  find  the  grand- 
est scenery  and  most  interesting  people  (with  fine  roads 
for  motoring)  in  the  mountain  district  of  the  (here  the 
Commander  drew  out  his  notebook  which  he  always  car- 
ried and  with  some  difficulty  pronounced  the  name)  Djurd- 
jura  Mountains,  inhabited  by  the  Kabyles  between  Dellys, 
Menerville,  and  Bougie. 

**  The  High  Plateaux  run  east  and  west  between  the  Tell 
and  the  Sahara.  They  are  uncultivated  plains  between 
mountain  ranges,  about  three  thousand  feet  above  sea  level. 
Here  grow  large  quantities  of  alfa  or  esparto  grass,  which 
is  exported  for  the  manufacture  of  paper.    The  dwarf  palm 

[17] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

grows  here  also,  from  which  is  made  a  sort  of  vegetable  hair 
which  they  export  for  the  filling  of  mattresses. 

**  The  soil  of  the  Sahara  Desert  is  in  some  parts  a  mix- 
ture of  sand  and  clay.  Toward  Morocco  are  rocky  districts 
and  mountains.  The  rivers  coming  from  these  are  util- 
ized to  produce  oases  by  forming  dams  and  canals  for  irri- 
gation. In  other  places  the  desert  is  a  mass  of  sand,  forming 
dunes.  There  are  depressions  in  the  Sahara  producing 
immense  sheets  of  not  very  deep  water,  Salter  than  the  sea, 
and  sometimes  below  sea  level.  He  says  we  shall  be  able 
to  go  down  some  one  hundred  and  fifty  miles  on  the  Desert, 
from  Biskra,  though  the  road  is  certainly  bad.  From  Tunis, 
however,  we  may  go  down  some  two  hundred  and  fifty  miles 
on  a  very  good  road. 

**  He  says  also  that  wheat  is  the  principal  cereal  grown  by 
the  colony,  but  the  system  of  agriculture  carried  on  is  gen- 
erally poor.  They  do  not  clear  the  land  from  weeds,  little 
manure  is  used,  and  the  ploughing,  mostly  done  with  crooked 
sticks,  is  too  superficial." 

*'  How  do  you  remember  all  this?  ''  cried  the  Other-one, 
yawning  a  little. 

**  The  most  successful  and  important  branch  of  agricul- 
ture, it  seems,'*  continued  the  Commander,  *'  is  vine  grow- 
ing. Vines  seem  to  thrive  everywhere  in  Algeria,  ^ven 
on  the  worst  land  and  the  most  burning  soil.  Algeria  can 
produce  an  infinite  variety  of  wines,  suited  to  every  consti- 
tution, and  to  every  caprice  of  taste. 

**  This  gentleman  says  that  the  native  population  may  be 
separated  into  two  classes:  the  Arabs,  including  the  Moors, 
and  Berbers,  including  Kabyles.  The  Arabs  of  the  plains 
live  in  tents  or  huts  and  are  divided  into  tribes,  changing 
from  place  to  place  as  circumstances  may  require.  The 
Moors  constitute  the  bulk  of  the  Arab  population  in  the 
towns.  They  are  a  very  mixed  race  sprung  from  the  various 
nations  who  have  occupied  the  country. 

* '  This  man  declares  he  can  hardly  tell  the  Arabs  from  the 
Moors.      Their  number  was  much  swelled  by  the  Moors  who 

[18] 


THE  ARRIVAL 

were  driven  away  from  Spain.  The  Moors,  it  seems,  are 
farther  advanced  in  civilization  than  the  Arabs  or  the 
Kabyles.  Many  of  them  are  wealthy  and  fond  of  luxury 
and  pleasure,  but  their  moral  character  stands  very  low. 

*  *  The  Jews  are  in  great  numbers  in  Algeria ;  and  their 
condition  has  been  greatly  improved  since  the  decree  of 
French  citizenship  conferred  upon  them  by  the  French 
Government  in  1871. 

**  The  Kabyles,  or  Berbers,  have  undergone  no  change  since 
the  French  occupation.  Such  as  they  were  a  thousand  years 
ago  they  are  to-day,  compact  and  unaltered  in  all  the  pecu- 
liarities of  their  race  and  individuality. 

**  The  Spanish  are  numerous  in  Algeria,  especially  in 
the  province  of  Oran.  They  are  subject  to  military  service 
in  the  French  army,  and  granted  the  benefit  of  French 
citizenship. 

**  He  says  that  the  negroes  are  as  much  Mohammedans  in 
Algeria  as  they  are  Christians  in  the  United  States.  Relig- 
ion means  to  them  a  drum  and  some  money  to  buy  rum.  Al- 
most unconsciously,  for  sixty  years.  Sambo  in  Algiers  is  held 
by  authority  to  be  as  good  as  any  other  man.  The  Euro- 
peans, the  Arabs,  the  Jews,  and  the  negroes  all  enjoy  equal 
rights.    The  Arabs  often  intermarry  with  negresses.*' 

**  I  should  think,**  murmured  the  Other-one,  yawning 
again,  **  all  the  negroes  in  the  United  States  would  emigrate 
to  Algeria.  I  have  heard  it  said  the  ladies  in  Algiers  call 
the  black  man  Boule-de-Neige,  or  Snow-Ball." 

When  they  had  finished  their  luncheon  the  Commander 
looked  at  his  watch.  **  By  George!  **  he  exclaimed.  **  They 
must  be  getting  the  automobile  off  by  this  time!  '* 

So  our  Motorists  at  once  hurried  off  across  the  brilliant 
square,  down  the  long  rampe  to  the  quay,  and  just  in  time 
to  see  the  car  swinging  high  in  the  air  again,  while  the  flat- 
boat  carrying  the  derrick  moved  slowly  to  the  pontoon  onto 
which  the  car  was  lowered,  but  less  skilfully  than  at  Mar- 
seilles. The  Commander  was  even  more  disturbed  than 
before.     At  last,  however,  the  car  was  landed  and  rested 

[19] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

once  more  on  its  stout  rubber  tires.  The  Other-one  fancied 
it  breathed  a  sigh  of  relief;  for  a  motor  always  seemed  to 
her  a  living  creature,  excitable  and  passionate,  with  moods 
like  some  women  —  deliciously  lovable  when  in  a  gentle  one, 
but  most  detestable  and  to  be  dreaded  when  contrary  and 
vixenish. 

The  chauffeur  busied  himself  with  getting  the  car  in 
order  and  soon  they  were  rolling  up  the  long  rampe  Magenta, 
and  came  to  the  Boulevard  Carnot.  The  motley  loungers 
were  still  there  hanging  over  the  balustrade  and  watching 
the  harbor's  busy  life;  the  background  of  dull  European 
colors  throwing  into  relief  the  creams,  the  grays,  and  the 
reds  of  the  Orientals. 

*'  I  think,"  said  the  Other-one,  looking  at  the  high  arcades 
and  great  business  blocks,  *'  that  this  town,  so  far,  seems 
disappointingly  French  and  has  but  little  Oriental  flavor 
except  for  the  Arab  life  that  flows  in  and  out  of  the  crowds ; 
although  the  Mosque  de  la  Pecherie  over  there,  on  the  Place 
du  Gouvernement, —  with  its  white  dome  and  minaret, —  looks 
as  if  it  had  slipped  down  from  the  old  Arab  town  above. 
It  seems  like  purest  marble,  though  I  know  it  is  nothing  but 
whitewash. ' ' 

*  *  What  shall  we  do  now  1  ' '  asked  the  Commander.  * '  Take 
a  ride  through  the  town  and  suburbs  and  see  the  country 
around,  from  an  automobile  ?  *  * 

*  *  I  vote  for  seeing  some  of  the  mosques  this  afternoon, 
if  we  can  find  a  good  guide,  *'  answered  the  Other-one. 
**  You  know,  to-morrow  is  the  Moslem  Sabbath,  and  Chris- 
tians cannot  get  in  then;  we  ought  to  see  them  as  soon  as 
possible,  for  I  know  you  will  want  to  be  off  in  the  motor  to 
pastures  new,  in  a  day  or  so.'* 

So  at  their  hotel  they  found  a  guide  named  Mohamed,  a 
smiling,  brown-skinned  little  fellow,  with  the  whitest  of 
teeth  and  a  most  important  air.  The  Other-one  was  much 
taken  with  his  costume,  which  was  that  of  the  regulation 
guide,  or  dragoman:  a  finely  braided  jacket  opened  over  a 
gayly  striped  vest,  long  baggy  trousers,  and  the  scarlet  fez, 

[20] 


THE   ARRIVAL 

with  a  great  blue  tassel  swinging  at  the  back  of  his  head. 
He  demanded  ten  francs,  but  finally,  as  **  a  great  favor," 
consented  to  go  for  six,  as  it  was  rather  late,  and  no  other 
tourists  were  in  view.  He  spoke  no  English,  and  so 
addressed  himself  always  to  the  Other-one,  who,  with  strict 
attention,  could  manage  to  extract  sufficient  from  his  French 
to  keep  them  informed  a  little  as  to  what  he  showed  them. 

**  Madame  must  first  see  the  Mosque  of  the  Pecherie.  It 
is  called  the  Djama-el-Djedid,  or  the  new  mosque.  Madame 
knows  that  Djama  is  the  Arabic  for  mosque?  ** 

They  left  the  car  at  the  hotel  and  walked  across  the 
Place  du  Gouvernement,  the  guide  pushing  through  the 
crowd  and  skilfully  rescuing  his  small  party  from  the  impor- 
tunate venders,  growling  at  them  in  guttural  tones  and 
cuffing  the  annoying  little  bootblack,  who  tried  to  shine  the 
Other-one's  shoes.  Then  turning  to  her,  he  would  address 
her  in  the  softest  and  most  flutelike  tones,  so  that  she  mar- 
velled at  his  range  of  voice.  They  arrived  soon  at  the 
dazzlingly  white  mosque  and  entered  the  portal,  where  a 
dried-up,  much-wrinkled  old  Arab,  arrayed  in  a  huge  white 
turban,  met  them,  mumbled  something  to  Mohamed,  then 
shuffled  off. 

**  He  has  gone  to  bring  Madame  the  slippers,  and  Mon- 
sieur also.  One  cannot  enter  this  holy  place  in  the  dusty 
shoes  of  the  street.'* 

While  waiting,  the  Other-one  opened  her  book  and  read: 
**  This  mosque  was  built  in  1660  by  the  Turks.** 

**  Why  called  the  new  mosque?  **  she  queried. 

*'  A  Christian  slave  was  the  architect,  a  Genoese  or  Greek. 
He  built  it  in  the  form  of  a  cross,  and  the  Moslems  were 
so  indignant  that  the  Pacha  had  him  impaled.** 

The  old  guardian  now  came  back,  bringing  some  huge 
yellow  slippers,  which  he  proceeded  —  kneeling  down  — 
to  put  on  the  shoes  of  the  party,  who,  thus  fortified,  shuffled 
into  the  mosque  past  rows  of  worn  and  battered  slippers 
which  the  worshippers  within  had  left  behind  them.  The 
interior  was   disappointingly  bare  and  simple,   and  white- 

[21] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

washed  everywhere.  There  were  no  wonderful  rugs  such 
as  the  Other-one  had  read  were  to  be  found  in  all  mosques. 
Here  was  only  plain  matting  on  the  floor  everywhere,  even 
around  the  columns  up  three  or  four  feet,  and  a  like  height 
on  the  walls.  A  few  lamps  hung  from  the  ceiling.  The 
mimbar,  or  pulpit  for  the  chaplain  —  called  the  imam  —  who 
chants  sentences  from  the  Koran,  is  of  marble,  but  of  no 
especial  beauty. 

*  *  My  book  says  there  is  a  wonderful  Koran  kept  here, 
which  was  sent  by  the  Sultan  of  Constantinople  to  a  Pacha 
of  Algiers,  and  it  is  a  marvel  of  ornamentation  and  work,'* 
said  the  Other-one,  but  it  cannot  be  seen  except  on  special 
occasions. 

As  they  turned  soon  to  walk  down  to  the  entrance,  not 
seeing  much  to  detain  them,  they  noted  the  worshippers 
scattered  here  and  there  at  their  prayers,  kneeling,  rising, 
prostrating  themselves  flat  on  the  floor,  their  eyes  fixed,  their 
lips  moving,  always  with  the  face  toward  the  point  of  the 
compass  where  Mecca  lies.  None  of  them  paid  any  attention 
to  our  party — no  more  than  if  they  were  shadows.  At  one 
side,  on  a  sort  of  platform,  a  man  sat  rocking  back  and  forth 
and  repeating  some  phrases  over  and  over  in  a  high,  sing-song 
voice. 

*  *  What  is  he  saying  ?  ' '  asked  the  Other-one. 

*  *  He  is  repeating  sentences  from  the  Koran. ' ' 

As  they  shuffled  out  again,  the  Other-one  lost  one  of  her 
huge  yellow  slippers,  which  had  been  her  torment  ever  since 
she  had  entered  the  mosque.  The  old  Moslem  accompanying 
them  stooped  quickly,  and  with  a  guttural  exclamation  seized 
her  foot  and  thrust  the  slipper  rudely  on  again,  eying  her 
with  such  a  fierce  look  that  she  felt  a  shiver  run  down  her 
backbone.  She  was  glad  to  reach  the  entrance  door,  drop 
off  the  dreadful  slippers,  and  go  out  into  the  bright  sun- 
shine and  the  tumult  of  the  square. 

**  Now,  Madame  must  go  to  the  Djama-el-Kebir,  the  Great 
Mosque,*'  said  Mohamed,  and  he  aimed  a  blow  at  a  dirty 
gamin  who,  blacking-brush  in  hand,  stooped  to  seize  one  of 

[22] 


THE    DJAMA  EL-KEBIK,   OK    THE 
GREAT   MOSQUE,  ALGIERS 


MOHAMMEDANS  PERFORMING   THEIR   ABLUTIONS  AT 

MARBLE  FOUNTAIN  IN  THE  COURTYARD  OF 

THE  GREAT   MOSQUE,   ALGIERS 


TOMB   OF   SIDI-BOU-KOUBKIN   IN   THE 

ARAB  CEMETERY  Op  BELCOURT 

AT  ALGIERS 


^  M 


THE  SUMMER  PALACE  OF  THE  GOVERNOR  OF  ALGIERS 


THE  ARRIVAL 

the  Commander's  stout  shoes.  The  Rue  de  la  Marine  runs 
up  from  the  Mosque  of  the  Pecherie  to  the  Grand  Mosque. 
A  few  shops  intervene  and  it  is  a  narrow  and  rather  gloomy 
street.  They  arrived  at  the  Djama-el-Kebir  after  a  short 
walk,  and  were  impressed  with  the  beauty  of  the  fagade, 
which  presents  a  gallery  of  fourteen  arcades  with  fine  horse- 
shoe arches,  dentated  and  supported  on  magnificent  white 
marble  pillars,  two  feet  in  diameter.  The  Great  Mosque 
seems  to  dominate  all  the  narrow  street.  Along  under  the 
arched  gallery,  were  squatting  various  groups  of  Moslems 
in  ragged  burnouses  and  shabby  turbans,  and  of  a  more  or 
less  poverty-stricken  appearance.  Some  were  talking  vocif- 
erously and  gesticulating  wildly.  Others,  with  their  heads 
sunk  on  their  breasts,  were  buried  in  thought  or  dreaming, 
perhaps,  the  true  believer's  dream  of  a  paradise  of  houris,  to 
which  he  thinks  he  is  going. 

The  guide  hastened  them  into  the  entrance,  whence  they 
passed  into  a  court  surrounded  by  a  double  row  of  arcades 
supported  by  pillars,  in  Alharabra  fashion.  Here,  at  one 
side,  is  a  fine  black  marble  fountain,  around  which  several 
Arabs  were  gathered,  their  robes  tucked  up  high  around  their 
brown  legs.  They  were  evidently  enjoying  a  most  satisfac- 
tory cleansing  before  entering  for  their  prayers  in  the 
Mosque;  for  it  is  of  the  faith  of  the  Moslems,  taught  in 
the  Koran,  that  a  believer  must  be  clean  from  the  dust  of  the 
street  before  he  enters  into  the  holy  place,  so  every  mosque 
has,  or  must  have,  a  fountain  near  it  or  within  its  precincts. 
The  men  washed  in  the  courtyard  of  the  Djama-el-Kebir, 
paid  no  attention  to  our  party,  but  went  on  splashing  and 
sputtering,  nor  troubled  themselves,  apparently,  when  the 
Other-one  snapped  them  up  with  her  ever-present  kodak. 

The  guide  led  their  party  across  the  court  to  a  door  where 
they  were  again  invested  with  leviathan  slippers,  which  the 
Commander  considered  **  great  nonsense!'*  They  passed 
into  a  large  rectangular  hall,  divided  into  naves  by  many 
columns  united  by  horseshoe  arches.  These  columns  were 
also  wrapped  to  a  height  of  five  or  six  feet  with  matting. 

[23] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

There  was  also  matting  on  the  floor;  few  rugs,  if  any. 
Great  lamps  and  crystal  chandeliers  hung  from  the  ceiling, 
and  there  was  a  tall  clock  in  one  corner,  for  a  Moslem  must 
always  have  a  huge  clock  in  his  mosque,  though  it  matters 
little  whether  it  keeps  time  or  not.  In  this  mosque  were  many 
more  worshippers  than  in  the  other,  who,  with  their  bur- 
nouses laid  aside,  were  bowing,  kneeling,  rising,  lifting  the 
arms  above  the  head,  and  mumbling  their  invocations  to 
Allah.  Others  seated  on  the  floor,  rocked  back  and  forth, 
reciting  from  the  Koran.  A  humming  and  buzzing,  as  if 
from  many  bees,  filled  the  place.  One  or  two  black-browed 
fellows  scowled  at  the  party.  The  others  seemed  so  wrapped 
up  in  their  devotions  as  to  be  absolutely  oblivious  to  any- 
thing outside. 

*'  It  is  certainly  very  impressive,''  said  the  Other-one, 
*'  and  a  lesson  to  us  Christians,  for  we  are  often  occupied 
in  church  with  anything  but  our  devotions;  but  I  wonder 
why  we  see  no  women  in  these  mosques!  '' 

They  had  now  floundered  across  the  hall  and  stopped  in 
front  of  a  niche  in  the  wall.  *'  That  is  the  Mihrab,"  said 
the  guide,  '*  and  shows  the  direction  in  which  Mecca  lies." 

Mohamed  now  began  in  a  parrot-like  way  to  deliver  the 
following  account  of  the  Mosque  which  he  had  evidently 
committed  to  memory,  while  the  old  man  who  had  accom- 
panied them  pulled  at  the  string  of  black  beads  he  held  and 
patiently  waited. 

**  This  Mosque  is  the  oldest  one  in  Algiers.  It  was  founded 
in  the  eleventh  century,  long  before  the  Turkish  domination. 
It  covers  an  area  of  two  thousand  square  metres.  On  the  mim- 
bar  —  which  you  see  here  —  near,  is  an  inscription  in  Cufic 
which  says  that  Taehfin,  Sultan  of  Tlemcen,  built  the  min- 
aret. It  is  ninety  feet  high.  It  was  badly  damaged  by  the 
Christians  during  the  bombardment.  The  arcades  on  the 
Rue  de  la  Marine  were  built  under  the  French  domination, 
and  the  white  marble  columns  came  from  the  Mosque  of 
Es-Saida,  built  in  the  eighteenth  century.''  Mohamed  fin- 
ished with  a  flourish  of  his  hand.    **  Madame  can  see  that  I 

[24] 


THE   ARRIVAL 

know  much.  Madame  will  do  well  to  secure  me  for  guide  all 
over  Algiers.  No  other  guide  in  the  city  can  give  Madame 
so  much  knowledge,  and  so  cheap,  Madame,  so  cheap.  Other 
guides,  they  will  —  ' ' 

*  *  Why  do  we  not  see  any  women  in  the  mosques  ?  ' '  said 
the  Other-one. 

**  The  ladies?    They  can  come,  but  they  do  not  wish  it." 

As  they  came  out  into  the  arched  gallery  and  into  the 
street,  the  Other-one  asked,  **  How  many  more  mosques  are 
there  to  see?  ** 

**  Once,  Madame,  before  the  French  came,  there  were  a 
hundred  mosques  and  kouhbas,  or  tombs  of  holy  men.  Now 
there  are  only  four  or  five.  There  is  now  the  Mosque  Tomb 
of  Sidi-Abd-er-Rahman  to  see,  the  most  beautiful  of  all; 
but  there  Madame  cannot  go  to-day,  for  strangers  can  enter 
only  on  Mondays  and  Tuesdays.  On  Monday  next,  I  shall 
be  most  happy  to  show  Madame  that  most  beautiful  mosque. 
It  is  near  the  Kasba,  so  we  may  visit  that  also.  Now  Madame 
can  go  to  see  some  fine  old  Moorish  palaces,  that  of  the 
Archbishop,  and  that  of  the  French  Governor.  Madame  will 
have  the  greatest  pleasure  to  see  them  under  Mohamed's 
guidance.** 

But  it  was  decided  to  leave  all  sight-seeing  now  and  go 
up  to  the  hotel  at  Mustapha  Superieur  to  see  about  their 
rooms. 

Soon  they  were  rolling  along  the  Boulevard  de  la  Repub- 
lique  with  the  enraptured  guide  to  point  the  way.  Being  on 
pay,  and  riding  in  an  automobile,  meant  the  height  of  bliss 
to  him.  The  azure  sea,  spreading  out  from  the  harbor  to 
the  horizon  line,  seemed  to  have  gained  a  more  glorious  hue 
with  the  late  sun.  They  turned  up  from  the  harbor  to  the 
Place  de  la  Republique,  past  the  graceful  palms  of  the  Public 
Garden. 

**  That  street,**  said  the  guide,  pointing  to  the  left,  **  is 
the  Bab-Azoun;  with  the  Bab-el-Oued, —  which  begins  at 
the  other  end  of  this,  at  the  Place  du  Gouvernement,  and 
leads  up  to  the  old  town,  which  Madame  must  surely  see 

[25] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

with  Mohamed, —  it  is  the  finest  s^eet  in  Algiers.  The 
Bab-Azoun  has  all  the  beautiful  French  shops,  and  the  Bab- 
el-Oued  has  the  native  shops,  where  Madame  may  buy, 
with  Mohamed  to  show  her  the  best  of  everything,  beautiful 
vases  in  hammered  copper  and  brass,  lovely  slippers,  the 
most  wonderful  jewellery  of  gold  or  silver  wire,  made  right 
there, —  in  brooches,  chains,  rings,  and  bracelets.  Oh,  Madame 
shall  see!  " 

* '  How  strange, ' '  exclaimed  the  Other-one  when  they 
reached  the  Rue  d'Isly  along  which  the  tram  runs  to  Mus- 
tapha  Superieur,  * '  to  see  all  these  modern  tram  cars,  with 
the  burnoused  men  and  the  veiled  women,  who  seem  to 
belong  to  Bible  times,  riding  in  them  and  sitting  side  by  side 
with  European  men  in  their  ugly  modern  trousers,  starched 
white  shirts,  and  villainous  derby  or  soft  hats;  the  women 
in  dresses  of  ungraceful  make,  and  big  hats  smothered  in 
plumes  or  artificial  flowers.  It  is  certainly  *  the  unchanging 
East  '  with  the  much  changing  West." 

The  Rue  d'Isly  is  a  real  French  street,  which  looks  as  if 
it  might  have  wandered  out  of  Paris,  with  its  shops  for 
the  sale  of  every  kind  of  merchandise,  and  the  funny  French 
signs, —  Au  gros  dindon,  Au  chat  noir,  A  la  poule  Manche, 
and  so  forth.  Were  it  not  for  the  burnoused  Arabs,  the 
grotesque  women  in  their  balloon-like  trousers,  the  braying 
donkeys,  and  the  water-carriers  with  their  great  brass  jars 
and  jingling  drinking-cups  strapped  to  their  backs  —  one 
might  believe  himself  really  in  Paris  on  a  side  street. 

'*  I  like  that  style  of  architecture  here,"  said  the  Com- 
mander ;  *  *  it  suits  the  country  better  than  the  ugly  modern 
French  style.  When  they  conquer  a  country  and  begin 
to  erect  new  buildings,  they  can't  do  better  than  to  copy 
the  style  of  architecture  of  the  first  occupants.  White 
Moorish  buildings  in  our  country,  with  its  changeable  climate, 
are  much  out  of  place;  here  they  are  admirable." 

*  *  Nor  do  I  object  to  the  whitewash  and  white  paint  in 
this  tropical  country,"  added  the  Other-one.  **  The  build- 
ings look  as  if  fashioned  out  of  purest  marble.    But  imagine 

[26>] 


THE  ARRIVAL 

these  white  structures  in  some  of  our  smoky  cities  at  home. 
They  would  remain  white  twenty-four  hours,  no  more." 

The  road  now  left  the  region  of  shops,  and  they  began  to 
roll  up  a  street  that  curved  round  walled  gardens,  with  white 
villas  buried  in  green  foliage.  They  could  look  down  over 
them  and  get  enchanting  views  of  the  sea,  off  to  the  dis- 
tant Cape  Matifou  and  the  far  pearly  caps  of  the  Kabylia 
Mountains.  The  ships  in  the  harbor  were  mere  flecks  in  the 
shimmering  blue.  The  Commander's  eyes  brightened,  and 
he  drew  in  long  breaths  of  the  fresh,  crisp  air. 

**  How  glorious  to  be  riding  like  this  in  a  fine  automobile, 
with  this  delightful  scenery  and  this  invigorating  air!  "  he 
exclaimed. 

The  guide  continued  to  call  the  names  of  buildings  and 
places,  as  the  car  rolled  on.  They  passed  a  quaint  English- 
looking  church  —  the  Scotch  church.  Near  it  is  a  most 
picturesque  little  villa  in  Moorish  style,  with  an  artistic 
gateway,  near  which  Adrian  stopped  the  car,  knowing  full 
well  it  was  picturesque  enough  to  be  snapped  up  by  the 
kodak.  They  had  never  to  tell  this  chauffeur  when  to  stop 
for  the  views.  His  temperament  was  attuned  to  feel  the 
beauty  of  things  they  might  pass;  and  he  understood  the 
desires  of  his  people  without  such  material  things  as  words. 

They  continued  to  mount  now  between  high  gray  walls 
over  which  burst  a  mass  of  feathery  green  vines.  Through 
open  gates  they  caught  views  of  enchanting  gardens.  Masses 
of  purple-red  Bougainvillea  clung  to  the  white  villas;  tall 
palms  stretched  their  feathery  fronds  heavenward;  pepper- 
trees  waved  their  lace-like  foliage,  and  the  golden  tassels 
of  the  mimosa  showed  against  the  dark  green  of  the  pines 
and  tall  cypress-trees.  Every  place  seemed  a  paradise. 
Now  the  sea  was  lost  to  view,  shut  away  by  groves  of  orange- 
trees.  Then  they  rounded  a  corner  and  again  they  could  look 
down  across  a  low  stone  wall,  over  green  foliage  punctuated 
with  white  domes  and  towers,  and  the  red-tiled  roofs  of  a 
village  below,  to  the  sea,  now  a  steely  blue,  for  some  white 
clouds  had  trailed  across  the  sun  and  cast  their  reflections 

[27] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

on  the  water.  To  the  left  were  the  rolling  green  hills,  and 
red-roofed  modern  Algiers  sliding  down  to  the  harbor, 
and  on  the  sea  an  outward-bound  steamer  was  leaving  a  long 
trail  of  smoke  behind  it. 

The  Commander  and  the  Other-one  had  alighted  from  the 
car  and  stood  looking  off  over  the  soul-thrilling  view.  At 
length  the  lady  said  softly :  * '  How  glorious  to  be  up  here, 
far  above  the  workaday  world  down  there,  with  all  this 
wealth  of  color  in  the  green  of  olive-trees,  of  pines,  cypresses, 
and  ilex,  the  blue  sea  down  below,  and  the  blue  sky  above, 
with  its  softly  floating  clouds!  The  smoky  trail  of  the 
departing  liner  but  accentuates  the  feeling  of  peace  and  of 
restfulness  one  has  here.  They  are  *  toiling  and  moiling  ' 
down  by  the  harbor,  but  here  we  may  dream.'* 

They  soon  went  on  and  passed  a  great  entrance-way  to 
a  big  white  Moorish  palace,  surrounded,  too,  with  palm- 
trees  and  gardens  and  velvety  greensward  stretching  away 
on  all  sides.  Soldiers  in  crimson  and  blue  uniforms  made 
pictures  of  themselves  against  the  white  facade. 

**  That  is  the  summer  palace  of  the  Governor,*'  said 
Mohamed.  '  *  Madame  may  go  in.  I  shall  have  much  pleasure 
in  taking  her,  as  the  Governor  is  not  here." 

**And  cannot  Monsieur  go  also?  However,  he  does  not 
wish  to  go  in  this  afternoon.    Some  other  day  he  will  see  it." 

**  Then  there  is  the  Museum  of  Antiquities  just  opposite 
here.    Madame  will  have  time  to  visit  it  before  it  closes." 

When  the  Other-one  told  the  Commander  this,  he  pricked 
up  his  ears  at  the  words  **  Museum  of  Antiquities,"  for 
these  are  his  soul's  delight.  He  seemed  to  hesitate  for  a 
moment,  then  said  firmly: 

* '  No !  to-morrow  will  be  better !  We  '11  stay  by  the  car 
the  rest  of  this  afternoon,  except  that  we  must  stop  a  moment 
at  the  hotel  to  ask  about  rooms." 

In  a  few  moments  they  came  to  a  gate  opening  into  a 
lovely  garden.  Two  ladies  were  seated  in  an  open  pavilion 
which  overlooked  the  road.  They  wore  light  dresses  and 
seemed  peacefully  happy. 

[28] 


THE  ARRIVAL 

**  How  summery  they  look/*  thought  the  Other-one. 
**  Surely  we  have  left  winter  behind  us!  " 

The  chauffeur  brought  the  car  round  under  the  high- 
arched  gate,  and  they  rolled  by  tall  trees,  and  by  beds  of 
tropical  plants,  then  stopped  at  the  side  entrance  of  a  long, 
white,  Moorish-looking  building,  with  many  little  balconies 
and  a  square  tower  or  two.  A  wide,  tiled  veranda  extended 
along  the  front.  Here  various  groups  were  sitting  taking 
their  afternoon  tea,  in  a  most  comfortable  way.  Some  of 
tlie  ladies  looked  askance,  and  with  apparent  indignation, 
at  our  dusty  party  and  at  the  motor,  the  gurgling  of  which 
seemed  to  disturb  their  peace;  so  that  the  Other-one  felt 
humble  and  apologetic. 

At  one  end,  near  where  the  car  stopped,  two  or  three  Arabs 
in  burnouses  and  brilliantly  clean  hdiks  had  spread  a  web 
of  gay  rugs.  Little  tables  were  scattered  around,  on  which 
were  all  sorts  of  fascinating  Oriental  trinkets, —  bracelets 
of  silver  with  blue  and  green  enamel,  necklaces  and  brooches 
of  silver,  too,  with  pieces  of  .coral  cunningly  set  in;  quaint 
boxes  of  metal  and  enamel  set  with  pale  turquoises  and 
emeralds,  and  a  thousand  and  one  other  things  made  to 
catch  the  eye  of  the  souvenir-hunting  tourist.  The  venders 
advanced  to  our  party,  as  they  alighted  from  the  car,  and 
addressed  themselves,  especially,  to  the  Other-one. 

**  Buy  something  here,  lady;  very  beautiful  things,  very 
cheap!**  they  cried  in  chorus,  their  bronzed  faces  lighting 
up  with  the  prospect  of  selling  some  of  their  wares,  for 
the  tea-drinking  crowd  seemed  oblivious  of  their  display. 
Only  one  or  two  tall  English-looking  girls  were  poking  over, 
with  a  wearied  air,  some  of  the  charms  and  bracelets.  The 
Other-one  felt  at  once  a  burning  desire  to  invest  in  some 
of  the  fascinating  things  spread  out  so  temptingly,  but  the 
Commander  cast  the  eye  of  a  veteran  collector  upon  them. 

**  Mostly  trash,'*  he  said,  **  and  modern  —  stay!  Some 
of  these  rugs  are  pretty  good,  and  here  is  a  necklace  or  two 
of  interesting  work.*' 

One  old  Arab  had  caught  the  word  *' modern.**     "Fine 

[29] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

Kabyle  jewellery,  all  old,  not  new,'*  he  said.  *'  All  very 
old !  ' '  and  seeing  he  had  a  connoisseur  with  whom  to  deal, 
he  hastened  to  pull  out,  from  a  hidden  place,  some  quaint 
and  unique  bracelets,  some  plaques  with  chains  and  fibulae 
with  which  to  attach  them,  one  or  two  anklets  and  two  neck- 
laces, all  of  silver,  of  fine  and  careful  workmanship,  with 
etched  designs,  and  with  pieces  of  coral  set  in  them,  and 
some  blue  and  green  enamel  around  the  coral.  The  Com- 
mander's face  lighted  up  as  he  examined  these  treasures, 
though  he  made  an  effort  to  conceal  from  the  astute  Arab  his 
delight  in  them. 

**  Not  bad,*'  he  said  carelessly.  ''From  what  place  do 
these  come  ? ' ' 

' '  From  the  Kabyles,  all  —  fine,  splendid,  very  cheap ! '  * 

*  *  The  Kabyles  ? ' '  he  asked.  *  *  I  do  not  know  much  about 
them.    "Where  do  they  live?  '' 

*  *  Oh !  1  can  tell  you  where  they  live,  though  I  know  little 
about  them,'*  volunteered  the  Other-one.  '*  They  are  the 
people  who  are  up  there  in  the  mountains  to  the  East,  the 
snow-capped  mountains  we  saw  when  coming  into  the  har- 
bor. At  least,  some  of  the  tribes  live  there,  and  they  are 
the  people  who  gave  the  French  so  much  trouble  to  conquer. ' ' 

**  Well!  it  is  certain  they  do  fine  work  in  jewellery;  and 
those  rugs?  "  he  turned  to  the  old  Arab. 

' '  All  Kabyle ;  fine,  splendid,  very  cheap !  ' '  And  the 
Arab  hastened  to  pull  off  a  rug  from  the  balustrade.  Just 
then  the  polite  manager  of  this  paradise  among  hotels  came 
up.  He  was  *'  most  unhappy  to  think  he  could  give  the 
Commander  no  rooms  at  once.  Possibly  to-morrow,  but 
surely  the  day  after  there  would  be  a  vacancy." 

The  Other-one  turned  away,  disappointed,  and  went  to 
climb  into  the  car.  She  resolved,  however,  that  when  they 
should  come  to  dwell  in  the  hotel  she  would  invest  in  some 
of  those  trinkets,  even  though  they  were  only  **  modern 
trash." 

The  Commander  lingered  behind,  but  after  a  time  he 
came   with   a   package   in   his   hands,    which   he   carefully 

rsoi 


THE  ARRIVAL 

deposited  under  the  seat  in  the  car.  **  Some  necklaces,  a 
plaque  or  two,  and  a  pair  of  bracelets,"  he  said  rather 
apologetically. 

**  Why  did  you  buy  those  barbaric  things?  '*  exclaimed 
the  Other-one.    *  *  You  know  I  can 't  wear  thera !  * ' 

**  For  the  museum,*'  the  Commander  answered  briefly; 
and  added,  as  they  rolled  down  the  road,  **  I  must  learn 
more  about  those  Kabyles.  They  must  be  a  skilful  and 
interesting  people  to  weave  such  rugs  and  to  do  such  intri- 
cate work  in  silver.  I  must  make  a  collection  of  their 
jewellery  for  the  museum.  Ask  the  guide  where  we  are  to 
go  now." 

Mohamed  showed  his  white  teeth  in  a  broad  smile,  delighted 
that  his  stay  in  the  automobile  was  to  be  prolonged. 

**  I  know,"  he  said  eagerly.  **  Madame  may  go  from  here 
to  the  Column  Voirol,  then  to  El  Biar,  from  there  to 
Bouzarea,  see  Notre  Dame  d*Afrique,  so  fine,  then  down  to 
St.  Eugene,  and  back  to  Algiers  by  the  sea.  It  is  most  beau- 
tiful, and  the  road  is  very  good. 

So  they  came  up  by  El  Biar  to  the  hill  of  Bouzarea  which 
is  the  culminating  point  above  Algiers,  and  is  1150  feet 
above  the  sea.  Unfortunately  one  cannot  go  up  to  the  very 
highest  point,  as  there  is  a  fort,  and  one  is  not  allowed  to 
go  within  the  enclosure  without  permission. 

**  Madame  must  go  up  to  the  European  cemetery  for  the 
splendid  view;  it  is  but  a  short  distance  from  here,"  said 
Mohamed.  They  alighted  and  walked  up  the  hill,  passing 
several  white-domed  small  buildings,  one  notably  larger  than 
the  other,  encircled  with  hedges  of  the  pale  green,  distorted- 
looking  prickly  pear,  which  seemed  to  surround  the  tomb 
to  protect  it  from  unholy  intrusion. 

**  It  is  the  koubba  of  Sidi  Nouman,  a  holy  man,"  said 
Mohamed. 

**  I  have  read  that  a  holy  man,  or  saint,  is  called  by  the 
Moslems  a  marabout,  and  his  tomb  a  koubba,"  added  the 
Other-one,  **  and  we  shall  see  many  of  them  on  the  hill- 
sides and  on  the  plains  of  Algeria  and  Tunisia." 

[31] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

They  now  reached  the  cemetery  and  stopped  with  a 
great  thrill.  A  glorious  scene  lay  before  them:  far  below 
lay  the  sea,  with  opal  tints  in  the  deep  blue,  with  ships 
coming  and  going,  mere  specks,  on  its  surface ;  to  the  north, 
abrupt  ravines  descending  to  far  Pointe  Pescade,  and  off 
in  the  mist,  Sidi  Ferruch,  where  the  French  landed  when 
they  came  as  conquering  heroes  to  fair  Algiers;  then  the 
heights  of  the  Sahel,  which  is  the  name  for  the  waves  of  green 
hills  running  from  the  sea  on  the  north  to  the  plain  of 
the  Mitidja  on  the  south.  The  Sahel  is  highest  and  widest 
near  Algiers,  and  narrows  toward  the  west.  The  Sahel 
is  crowded  with  villages  and  spread  with  fertile  fields.  Up 
here,  all  could  be  seen  with  shades  of  green,  from  the  trees 
deepening  under  the  late  afternoon  sun  to  the  pale  tints 
of  early  grain-fields.  Away  off  in  the  west,  a  mound 
showed  against  the  western  sky. 

"It  is  the  tomb  of  the  Christian, '*  said  Mohamed,  "  and 
Madame  will  go  with  me  —  a  long  ride  —  to  see  if 

*  *  It  looks  like  a  load  of  hay !  ' '  exclaimed  the  Comman- 
der.   *  *  "We  must  go  to  see  it  on  our  trip  west. '  * 

**And  that  beautifully  symmetrical  mountain  that  rises 
into  the  sky,  and  is  of  such  an  ethereal  blue  —  what  is  it?  " 

'*  That  is  Mount  Chenoua,  Madame.'' 

As  they  looked  south  and  east,  they  could  see  the  hill  of 
Mustapha  Superieur,  its  green  foliage  spotted  with  its  white 
villas,  and  the  line  of  hills  descending  to  far  Cape  Matifou. 
Back  of  them,  the  stern  outline  of  the  Atlas  Mountains,  and 
farther  on  to  the  west  the  great  fissure  of  the  Gorge  of  the 
Chiffa. 

'*  Madame  will  go  with  Mohamed  to  see  that  wonderful 
gorge?  " 

*  *  I  'm  not  so  sure, ' '  thought  the  Other-one,  and  she  turned 
away  to  look  off  to  those  silver  points  in  the  now  reddening 
sky, — the  Djurdjura  Mountains  in  Kabylia.  Again  a  thrill 
ran  over  her.  Again  she  exclaimed  to  herself,  ' '  "What  ad- 
ventures are  to  come  to  us  in  those  far,  white-tipped 
mountains?  " 

[32] 


THE  ARRIVAL 

After  going  down  again  to  the  car,  there  was  more  hill- 
climbing,  then  over  a  smooth  road  they  came  to  the  heights 
crowned  with  the  sailors'  church, —  Notre  Dame  d*Afrique, 
with  its  huge  central  dome  and  two  Roman  Byzantine  wings. 
Here  they  were  entranced  with  another  glorious  view  of  sea 
and  mountains,  done  in  tones  of  rose  and  gold  by  the 
declining  sun. 

They  went  for  a  moment  or  two  into  the  darkening  church, 
but  found  nothing  of  special  merit.  There  is  some  showy 
stucco-work  on  the  walls,  and  a  solid-silver  statue  of  the 
Archangel  Michael.  On  the  altar,  the  Virgin  is  presented  in 
a  black  marble  statue.  Round  the  apse  is  this  charitable 
motto  in  French:  **  Notre  Dame  d'Afrique,  pray  for  us  and 
for  the  Mussulmans.'* 

The  guide  took  his  patrons  to  the  point  overhanging  the 
sea,  where  the  ceremony  of  blessing  the  souls  of  the  sailors  lost 
at  sea  takes  place.  Then,  returning  to  the  car,  they  went  down 
the  steep  road,  letting  the  engine  do  the  work  of  holding  the 
car  back,  and  —  so  it  seemed  to  them  —  they  slid  on  velvet 
runners  down  into  St.  Eugene  on  the  sea,  the  rays  of  the 
setting  sun  tinting  its  white  houses  and  villas  rose-color. 

The  Jews,  Maltese,  Spaniards,  and  some  French  live  here, 
the  last-named  having  the  pretty  villas  and  gardens.  The  car 
now  rolled  on  a  smooth  level  road  above  the  sea,  past  the  Fort 
des  Anglais.  The  Hopital  du  Dey  loomed  up,  as  they  went 
through  the  Faubourg  Bab-el-Oued.  The  sea  was  dashing  in 
long  lines  of  foam  and  throwing  up  spray  against  the  masses 
of  rock  under  the  bastions  of  the  lighthouse.  The  color  had 
deepened,  but  the  waves  caught  the  red  from  the  descending 
sun,  here  and  there,  and  the  foam  crests  were  pink-tinted. 
The  car  rolled  up  by  the  Place  du  Gouvernement,  with  its 
surging  crowd  and  clanging  tram-cars,  and  the  chauffeur 
brought  it  to  rest  beneath  the  palm-trees  and  in  front  of  the 
hotel 

Mohamed  bade  his  people  an  impressive  good-bye  and 
showed  all  his  dazzling  white  teeth  as  the  Commander  put  a 
generous  fee  into  his  open  palm. 

[33] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

**  Madame  will  see  Mohamed  early  in  the  morning,"  he 
said,  bowing  low  with  his  hand  on  his  heart,  **  and  Madame 
will  have  much  satisfaction  in  going  with  him  to  see  the  ceme- 
tery, the  Old  Town,  and  the  Kasha,  with  the  Archbishop's 
Palace  and —  " 

**  Stop,  stop !  "  cried  the  Other-one;  ''  that  is  more  than  we 
can  do  in  one  day. ' ' 

*'  Oh,  Madame !  All  the  foreign  ladies  —  except  the  French 
ladies,  who  are  indolent  and  do  not  care  to  see  much  —  see 
more  than  that  when  they  take  me  for  guide.  As  to  the  other 
guides  in  Algiers,  they  do  not  know  much,  nor  can  they  go 
around  quick  enough  to  please  American  and  English  ladies. 
It  is  only  Mohamed  who  can  satisfy  them.*' 

"When  the  Other-one  had  checked  the  guide 's  egotistical  ram- 
blings,  she  went  up  with  the  Commander  in  the  most  deliberate 
of  elevators  and  found  their  room  almost  on  the  top  floor,  * '  the 
last  one  left,"  the  manager  said,  and  which  ''  they  were  very 
fortunate  to  get,  for  Algiers  was  so  full."  The  one  front 
window  overlooked  the  Place  du  Gouvernement ;  and  as  they 
gazed  from  it  down  upon  the  palm  and  ilex  trees,  with  electric 
lights  already  aglow,  a  perfect  bedlam  of  sound  came  up, 
shrieks  and  howls,  shrill  cries  and  the  babble  of  voices,  the 
rumbling  of  cars,  the  shrilling  of  whistles,  with  the  hoarse 
growl  of  some  outgoing  liner,  the  beating  of  drums,  the  bray- 
ing of  donkeys,  and  all  the  other  sounds  which  a  city  —  espe- 
cially an  Oriental  one  —  gives  forth  at  night. 

' '  We  won 't  sleep  a  wink  to-night !  ' '  exclaimed  the  Other- 
one,  with  a  weary  yawn.  *  *  Oh !  Why  could  they  not  have 
taken  us  into  that  paradise  of  hotels  at  Mustapha  Superieur  1 ' ' 


[34] 


CHAPTER   III 


THE  next  morning,  at  a  reasonably  early  hour,  the  car, 
with  the  patient  Adrian,  rolled  under  the  palm-trees  by 
the  hotel  and  stopped  not  far  from  the  flower-kiosk,  which 
was  gay  with  jars  of  carnations,  primroses,  great  bunches  of 
violets,  and  pink  and  white  azaleas  in  pots. 

The  Commander  and  the  Other-one  soon  appeared,  the  latter 
armed  with  kodak  and  a  Cook's  guide-book.  Mohamed  ap- 
peared at  once,  also,  and  he  smiled  brilliantly  as  he  saw  them. 

The  Commander  climbed  to  his  seat  of  preference  by  the 
chauffeur.  There  he  could  watch  the  road  roll  up  before  him, 
note  any  unusual  obstacles,  and  scare  off,  with  the  stout  whip 
he  always  carried,  any  unheeding  or  too  confident  dog.  Many 
a  poor  creature's  life  had  been  saved  thereby,  and  many  a 
heartache  of  devoted  owners. 

*  *  Where  first  ? '  *  asked  the  Commander,  as  Adrian  cranked 
the  car. 

**  First,  as  it  is  Friday,  to  the  Arab  cemeteries,*'  answered 
the  Other-one,  **  but  you  know,  as  it  is  women's  day,  you  can- 
not go  there." 

**What  nonsense!"  exclaimed  the  Commander,  laughing. 
**  What  am  I  to  do  meanwhile?  " 

**  Oh!  you  can  go  for  a  ride,  then  come  back  for  me  when 
you  please;  though,  as  I  want  to  go  to  two  cemeteries,  you 
had  better  not  be  gone  too  long."  And  the  Other-one  would 
have  chuckled  had  she  been  a  man. 

**  Madame  will  go  first  to  the  Arab  cemetery  upon  the 
Kasha,  which  we  will  visit  after ;  and  then  Madame  will  wish 
to  see  the  cemetery  at  Belcourt,  where  the  rich  Arab 
ladies  go." 


[35] 


A   MOTOR   FLIGHT 

The  car  came  down  by  the  villas  in  their  gardens,  fairer 
than  ever  in  the  brilliant  morning  sunshine.  The  sea  was  of 
a  sparkling  azure,  and  the  air  sweet  and  fresh  with  the  fra- 
grance of  flowers  and  the  odor  of  the  sea.  Everything  con- 
tributed to  put  the  party  in  the  best  of  spirits.  Guided  by 
the  skilled  touch  of  Adrian,  the  car  seemed  in  sympathy  with 
all,  and  glided  like  a  thing  of  life  down  the  curving  road  of 
the  hill,  shaded  by  the  graceful  pepper-trees  and  live-oaks 
with  their  dark  rich  green. 

So  they  soon  came  to  the  Place  du  Gouvernement,  more  than 
ever  animated  in  the  morning  light, —  a  veritable  kaleidoscope 
of  color  and  changing  figures.  From  there  they  rolled  into 
the  Hue  de  la  Lyre,  with  its  arcades  and  native  shops,  fascinat- 
ing with  gay  rugs  and  cunningly  wrought  vessels  in  brass  and 
copper.  The  guide  pointed  out  the  Cathedral  of  St.  Philippe 
at  the  corner  of  the  Eue  du  Divan  opening  into  the  Place 
Malakoff.  The  cathedral  was  once  a  mosque,  and  has  been 
built  over,  and  it  ranks  now  as  one  of  the  most  important 
buildings  in  Algiers.  A  broad  flight  of  steps  leads  up  to  a 
fine  horseshoe-arched  entrance,  and  the  towers  on  the  sides 
of  it  look  like  two  minarets,  so  that  the  church  has  not  entirely 
lost  its  mosque-like  characteristics.  Next  to  this  is  the  beauti- 
ful Moorish  winter  palace  of  the  Governor,  with  two  graceful 
palms  before  the  entrance-way.  It  was  once  the  palace  of 
Dar-Hassan  Pacha.  Just  opposite  is  the  Archbishop's  palace, 
an  even  more  beautiful  type  of  Moorish  architecture.  Both 
palaces  are  as  white  as  if  built  of  purest  marble,  so  that  the 
Place  Malakoff  has  a  decidedly  Oriental  look,  with  Arab  men 
—  their  burnouses  pulled  up  over  their  haiks  —  sauntering 
slowly  and  dreamily  across  the  square,  and  Arab  women  in 
their  grotesque  trousers,  and  long  white  mantles  held  across 
their  veiled  faces,  scuttling  hastily  away,  some  in  one  direc- 
tion, some  in  another,  as  if  afraid  of  being  seen. 

**  Stop!  *'  cried  the  Other-one.  **  I  must  have  a  snapshot 
at  those  clumsy  big  birds." 

It  was  a  work  of  difficulty,  however,  and  the  birds  would 
wabble  off  when  she  had  her  camera  pointed  at  them.    How- 

[361 


ARAB   CEMETERIES 

ever,  by  a  skilful  turn  and  a  pretence  of  not  seeing  them, 
being  engaged  in  looking  hard  at  the  cathedral,  the  Other-one 
finally  succeeded  in  getting  the  backs  of  one  group,  opposite 
a  most  fascinating  shop  filled  with  Oriental  brass  and  copper 
articles.  The  women  were  apparently  gossiping  over  some 
purchases  they  had  made,  judging  by  their  guttural  talk  and 
gesticulations,  and  being  so  absorbed  they  were  oblivious 
of  the  kodak.  Then  there  was  another  snap  at  two  women 
coming  toward  the  Other-one.  The  foremost  looked  like  a 
servant,  for  she  bore  a  big  basket  and  was  unveiled,  and 
seemed  not  to  care  whether  one  saw  her  face  or  not,  which 
was  so  ugly  and  so  black,  that  the  Other-one  thought  it  quite 
a  sin  not  to  cover  it  with  a  veil. 

*  *  What  a  blessing  these  veils  must  be  to  old  and  ugly 
women!"  said  the  Commander  to  the  Other-one  as  she 
climbed  into  the  car,  which  now,  by  the  guide's  direction, 
turned  up  a  narrow  street  into  the  broader  Rue  Marengo, 
where  was  a  seething  mass  of  humanity  which  boiled 
around  and  almost  under  the  wheels.  Several  half-naked 
gamins  made  jumps  to  cling  on  the  back  of  the  slowly  moving 
motor,  but  a  snap  at  them  with  the  Commander's  whip  drove 
them  off,  yelping  and  howling. 

**  This  whip  is  certainly  good  for  something  besides  dogs!  ** 
exclaimed  the  Commander,  laughing. 

It  was  a  relief  to  get  up  into  a  quieter  quarter  where  they 
passed  a  long  white  building  with  a  big,  central,  white  dome 
flanked  by  four  others.  There  was  a  Moorish  arched  en- 
trance, and  a  long  wall  with  a  double  row  of  small  columned 
arches  on  it,  near  the  top,  and  a  gateway  at  one  side.  The 
building  was  very  aggressive  in  whitewash. 

"  This  is  the  oldest  mosque  in  Algeria,*'  said  Mohamed, 
*'  and  in  it  is  the  tomb  of  the  Sidi-Abd-er-Rahman,  a  most 
holy  man.  Also  here  are  the  tombs  of  some  of  the  former 
Deys  and  Pachas  of  Algiers.  The  great  arched  door  leads  to 
the  school  depending  upon  the  mosque  —  the  Medersa-et- 
Tsalibia.  Madame  can  go  to  the  mosque  and  to  the  tomb, 
which  is  most  beautiful,  only  on  Mondays  and  Tuesdays,  from 

[37] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

eight  o'clock  until  noon  and  from  two  until  three.  If  it 
pleases  Madame,  Mohamed  will  take  her  there  next  Monday. '  * 

They  went  now  by  the  rampe  Valee  along  which  were  the 
old  Turkish  ramparts.  Here  is  an  enchanting  view,  down 
over  the  yucca  and  palm  trees  of  the  Marengo  garden,  to  the 
sea.  The  car  stopped,  at  a  signal  from  Mohammed,  not  far 
from  the  big  civil  prison  on  the  right,  and  near  an  avenue  of 
straggling  eucalyptus-trees.  Then  he  assisted  the  Other-one 
to  alight. 

*'  How  long  a  time  do  you  want  to  enjoy  your  cemetery? 
"Will  an  hour  be  enough  ?  ' '  asked  the  Commander. 

' '  I  think  it  will  do ;  but  you  know  we  have  the  Kasba  to 
see,  then  I  must  go  to  the  other  cemetery  as  soon  as  possible 
afterwards.** 

' '  What  a  morbid  taste  you  have  for  burying  grounds !  ' ' 
and  with  this  parting  shot,  the  Commander  signalled  to 
Adrian  and  the  car  passed  rapidly  away  down  the  hill  and 
disappeared. 

The  Other-one  had  descended  into  a  rather  unsavory  crowd 
not  far  from  the  civil  prison  on  the  right;  men  with  bur- 
nouses and  lidiksy  in  all  states  of  filth  and  rags,  their  bare 
brown  legs  looking  like  withered  branches  of  trees;  their 
shrivelled  feet  bare  or  thrust  into  ancient  slippers.  Little 
bright-eyed,  dirty  children  rushed  up  to  her,  holding  out 
their  grimy  hands  for  *'  un  sou,  un  sou!  ''  Some  of  the 
gamins  plunged  down  the  hill  after  the  car,  while  others 
crowded,  vociferous,  around  her;  but  Mohamed  rescued  her, 
dealing  vigorous  blows  here  and  there.  Many  of  the  men 
sat  squatting  on  the  ground,  staring  vacantly  before  them; 
others  had  risen  with  vague  looks  of  curiosity.  Filthy  and 
sodden  as  the  crowd  was,  it  was  picturesque ;  an  effect  which 
would  have  been  wanting  in  every  way  in  a  like  crowd  of 
poverty-stricken  Europeans  with  their  ugly  dress. 

Mohamed  led  his  lady  skilfully  out  of  the  rabble  and 
down  the  avenue,  then  under  some  ancient  plane-trees  with 
their  pallid,  spotted  trunks.  Here  and  there,  under  the  trees 
squatted  or  leaned  on  staves,  appallingly  filthy  beggars,  in 

[38] 


Tin;    \l;\R   CEMETERY,   NEAR  THE 
KASBA.    AICIHRS 


WOMEN  ON  FRIDAY,  IN  THE  ARAB  CEMETERY,  NEAR  THE 
KASBA,  AIX3IERS 


GRAVES  IN  THE  UPPER  TERRACE  OF 

THE  ARAB  CEMETERY  AT 

BELCOUR,T 


VOTIVE  OFFERINGS  FOUND  IN  RUINS  OF  ROMAN 
TEMPLES,  MUSEUM  OF  ALGIERS 


ARAB   CEMETERIES 

ancient  burnouses,  patched  with  old  rags  and  frayed  to  the 
last  degree  of  wearableness ;  their  beards  were  unkempt  and 
grizzled,  and  their  brown  and  distorted  limbs  exposed  and 
covered  with  bruises  and  sores.  The  Other-one  shivered  with 
disgust  and  pity  as  some  of  them  held  out  shaking  hands  and 
whined  their  petitions:  *^  Meskin,  meskin  "  (poor,  poor) 
**  for  the  love  of  Allah,  un  sou,  un  sou.*'  She  thought  that 
she  had  never  seen  in  any  country  such  wretched  and  miser- 
able beggars.  Her  heart  ached  for  them,  and  she  began  to 
pull  from  her  bag  all  the  change  she  had,  until  Mohamed 
restrained  her. 

*  *  There  are  many  more,  Madame  will  see,  and  poorer !  ' ' 

*  *  Alas !  if  poorer  than  these  what  must  they  be !  Is  this  to 
what  Mohammedanism  brings  its  believers?  *'  she  said  to 
herself. 

Women,  in  their  white  garments,  looking  like  ghosts  out  of 
their  tombs  for  the  day,  were  coming  and  going  dow^n  the 
avenue.  Many  were  carrying  bunches  of  evergreen  and 
wispy  bunches  of  flowers.  Little  bright-eyed  children  ran 
before,  or  clung  to  their  mothers*  trousers,  the  little  girls  ar- 
rayed, generally,  in  long  garments  of  pink  or  blue  silk,  satin, 
or  calico,  with  fanciful  handkerchiefs  wound  over  their  hair. 
They  looked  like  little  gay-plumagcd  birds.  An  ancient  Arab, 
squatted  und.  r  a  plane-tree,  did  a  thriving  business  in 
branches  of  evergreen.  Another  one  had  trays  of  unwhole- 
some looking  sweetmeats,  by  which  some  of  the  mothers 
paused  to  regale  their  little  pink  and  blue  birds,  while  others 
dragged  their  clamoring  children  away  from  the  tempting 
trays  with  harsh  exclamations.  More  of  the  crowd  of  women 
appeared  to  be  going  away  than  were  coming. 

**  I  fear  Madame  is  a  little  late,"  said  Mohamed,  as  he 
turned  to  greet  some  of  the  women,  who,  seeing  him  with  the 
foreign  lady  who  lield  a  kodak,  pulled  the  folds  of  their 
mantles  still  closer  over  their  faces. 

The  guide  led  the  way  across  a  bridge  over  a  ravine,  to 
where  the  avenue  ended  at  the  entrance  to  the  cemetery ;  there 
was  no  gate  proper,  but  a  sign  posted  on  a  board  in  Arabic 

[39] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

and  French  announced  the  cemetery  as  '^  reserved  for  women 
on  Fridays." 

It  was  a  strange  scene  which  met  the  Other-one's  eyes;  she 
looked  down  an  unkempt  hillside  where  rank  grass  grew,  and 
eucalyptus-trees  with  their  untidy  trunks  and  sprawling 
branches,  and  where  tall,  melancholy  cedars  cast  spots  of 
shade  on  hundreds  of  strange-looking  graves  with  marble  or 
wooden  uprights,  rounded  or  turban-shaped,  at  the  top.  They 
were  white  or  discolored  by  the  weather,  and  some  of  them 
leaned  at  all  angles.  Some  were  inclosed  in  a  low  box  run- 
ning across  the  sides  from  the  uprights,  others  were  on  square 
or  oblong  platforms  of  blue  and  white  tiles.  On  these  plat- 
forms, or  in  the  grass  near  some  of  the  tombs,  were  small 
groups  of  shrouded  ladies.  Some  had  thrown  back  their  white 
haiks  and  dropped  their  veils,  and  one  caught  glimpses  of 
gay  embroidered  vests  and  tunics  beneath.  Most  of  these 
women  were  chattering  and  laughing  while  placing  evergreens 
on  the  tomb,  or  eating  from  packages  of  food  spread  on  the 
grass  before  them.  Gayly  dressed  little  girls  and  small  boys 
in  red  skull  caps  and  long,  full-seated  trousers,  pranked, 
shrieking  and  laughing,  over  the  graves.  It  was  everywhere 
a  scene  of  gay  festivity.  Nothing  was  gloomy  in  the  warm 
sunshine  but  the  ancient,  melancholy  cedars.  Here  and  there 
were  kiosks,  through  whose  lattice-work  white  tombstones 
showed,  having  gilded  Arabic  inscriptions.  In  these  were 
seated  some  ladies,  who  seemed  haughty,  as  being  more  ex- 
clusive, and  also  more  pensive,  as  became  their  higher  station. 
The  Other-one  tried  to  discover  some  weeping  mourners,  but, 
except  a  few  who  seemed  old  and  ugly,  from  the  glimpses 
one  caught  through  the  open  mantle,  all  appeared  hilarious. 
The  few  looked  sadly  into  vacancy. 

*'  I  do  not  think  I  should  be  very  unhappy  if  I  lost  a  hus- 
band of  whom  I  owned  only  a  portion,  and  must  weep  any 
tears  I  had  to  shed  with  two  or  three  other  wives.  I  cer- 
tainly would  come  and  make  merry,  too,  over  his  tomb," 
laughed  the  Lady  to  herself. 

She  was  surprised,  as  she  turned  around,  to  find  Moham- 

[40] 


ARAB   CEMETERIES 

ed  standing  near  her.  She  thought  he  had  remained  near 
the  entrance  way. 

**  Why !  **  she  exclaimed,  *'  I  thought  you  could  not  come  in 
here  to-day.*' 

"  Oh,  I  am  a  guide;  they  do  not  mind  me,  and  I  must 
bring  my  ladies  here.'* 

**  Well!  '*  said  the  Other-one,  **  I  do  not  quite  understand. 
It  certainly  is  one  of  the  mysteries  of  Mohammedan  customs 
that  one  man  may  come  here  on  Friday,  and  others  not.  But 
tell  me  —  are  all  these  women  Arabs?  '* 

*  *  No,  Madame,  they  are  Kabyles  —  almost  all  Kabyles. 
They  come  down  from  the  mountains  and  live  sometimes  in 
the  towns,  though  they  do  not  like  them.  They  bury  their 
dead  mostly  here.'* 

The  Other-one  did  not  quite  believe  this,  for  she  had  found 
that  one  cannot  accept  in  good  faith  all  the  information  a 
guide  gives. 

A  narrow  path  led  down  one  side  of  the  cemetery  and  the 
Other-one  slowly  followed  it,  the  guide  behind  her,  seemingly 
in  an  apologetic  mood.  She  watched  the  phantom-like  groups, 
the  mysterious,  half- veiled  women,  and  thought,  **What  must 
their  lives  be  if  this  graveyard  is  the  spot  where  their  wildest 
revelries  are  lield !  Poor  creatures,  *  victims  of  a  false  and 
sensual  cult  '  !  " 

**  How  many  wives  can  a  man  have  here?  "  she  asked,  turn- 
ing abruptly  to  Mohamed,  who  seemed  somewhat  staggered 
by  the  question.  Recovering  himself,  he  answered,  **  He  may 
have  four  if  he  can  support  them,  and  if  rich  he  may  have 
more.  If  poor,  he  can  take  but  one,  but  when  she  gets  old  or 
cannot  work  any  more,  he  may  divorce  her  and  take  a  young 
woman,  who  can  better  do  the  things  to  be  done  in  the  tent 
or  house.    Madame  can  see  that  is  well  for  him." 

**  And  what  of  the  one  who  is  turned  into  the  street !  It  is 
shocking!  "  cried  the  Other-one. 

Mohamed  looked  surprised,  but  answered  humbly,  **  Yes, 
Madame!  " 

She  was  about  to  burst  into  a  vehement  tirade  against 

[41] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

Mohammedanism,  but  reflecting  that  her  French  vocabulary 
was  far  from  rich,  and  that  the  poor,  simple  guide  was  not 
responsible  for  the  defects  in  his  religion,  she  restrained  her- 
self, though  with  difficulty. 

As  they  walked  on  down  the  path,  the  view  opened  up 
before  and  across  the  green  hillside,  spotted  with  its  white 
tombstones;  and  the  hill  across  the  ravine  rose  in  emerald 
freshness  with  the  Byzantine  dome  of  Notre  Dame  d'Afrique 
outlined  against  the  soft  blue  of  the  sky.  To  the  right  was 
the  dominating  azure  of  the  sea.  It  was  a  lovely,  peaceful 
view.  The  babble  of  the  women  and  the  children  fell  softly 
on  the  ear  and  emphasized  the  quiet.  After  pausing  a  while 
to  let  the  serenity  of  the  scene  soften  her  irritated  feelings, 
the  Other-one  bethought  herself  of  the  Commander,  who  by 
this  time  would  be  impatiently  awaiting  her;  so  she  turned 
and  walked  up  the  path,  to  find  the  car  waiting. 

*'  Now  for  another  cemetery,  I  suppose,''  said  the  Com- 
mander, in  greeting. 

* '  Madame,  we  go  now  to  the  Kasba,  for  it  is  near,  and  we 
have  not  to  return.  Madame  can  see  how  valuable  Mohamed 
is,  and  how  he  plans  for  Madame 's  best  interests.  Here  is 
the  permission,  which  I  have  taken  at  the  Etat  Major,  Rue  de 
la  Marine." 

*  *  X>o  you  know  anything  about  the  Kasba  ?  ' '  asked  the 
Other-one  of  the  Commander,  as  they  left  the  car  and  walked 
on  to  the  entrance. 

**  It  was  the  ancient  citadel." 

**  Yes,  it  was  '  the  old  palace  of  the  governors  or  deys  of 
Algiers,  and  was  once  defended  by  two  hundred  guns.  In 
the  old  days  of  Algerian  predominance  it  was  a  magnificent 
palace  with  all  the  luxury  of  that  period, '  my  books  says.  '  It 
was  used  for  general  government  offices  and  for  courts  of 
justice.  There  was  a  separate  building  for  the  dey's  house- 
hold and  harem.  Once  there  were  beautiful  gardens  here, 
and  a  great  wall  surrounded  it.  Now  it  is  used  as  barracks 
for  a  regiment  of  artillery.  They  say  the  outer  walls  are  two 
yards  in  thickness.     It  was  here  that  a  scene  happened  that 

[42] 


ARAB   CEMETERIES 

caused  the  fall  of  Algiers.  Do  you  know  that  story  about  the 
last  Dey  ?  Well,  in  April,  1829,  the  Consul  of  France  at  that 
time  went  to  pay  his  respects  to  the  Dey,  according  to  the 
custom  then,  after  the  fast  of  Ramadan,  which,  you  know,  is 
the  Mussulman's  Lent.  The  Dey  was,  that  day,  in  a  very  bad 
humor,  and  received  the  compliments  of  the  French  Consul 
with  very  ill  grace.  In  the  midst  of  a  controversy  about  some 
money  affairs,  the  Consul  replied  very  sharply  to  Hussein 
Dey,  whereupon  the  latter  struck  him  across  the  face  with  his 
fan.  The  Consul,  much  insulted,  exclaimed,  "  This  offence  is 
not  to  me  but  to  my  master !  *  *  Hussein  Dey  answered  in  Ori- 
ental heat  and  pride,  **  I  care  no  more  for  your  master  than 
I  do  for  you."  So  the  French  fleet  came  and  stormed  and 
took  Algiers. '    What  a  blessing  to  the  country !  *  * 

Our  travellers  now  had  reached  the  entrance  to  the  first 
court,  where  Mohamed  delivered  them  over  to  a  native 
soldier.  First  they  saw  the  great  square  palace  of  the  dey; 
then  went  into  the  court,  where  was  a  pretty  marble  fountain. 
They  passed  by  an  ancient  mosque  having  a  second  court  with 
double  arcades,  supported  by  beautiful  old  twisted  columns. 
The  soldier  pointed  out  a  pavilion  jutting  out  over  the  court, 
and  told,  in  passable  French,  that  it  was  the  place  where  the 
French  consul  was  struck  with  the  fan.  From  here  they  went 
up  to  the  throne-room  and  admired  the  beautiful  painted 
Moorish  ceiling.  '' TTcre  was  once,'*  the  soldier  said,  **  a 
chain  across  the  entrance,  where  the  heads  of  decapitated 
Christian  captives  were  exposed  for  twenty-four  hours;  then 
the  chain  was  lowered,  and  the  Turkish  soldiers  had  the  heads 
with  which  to  amuse  themselves.'* 

**  Let  us  go  away  from  here,"  exclaimed  the  Other-one, 
shivering.  **  There  are  such  terrible  memories  connected 
with  it;  such  frightful  things  must  have  happened  here." 

They  turned  away  and  went,  under  the  soldier's  guidance, 
to  look  down  from  the  battlements  over  the  terraces  of  the 
houses  of  old  Algiers,  around  and  below  them.  Once  a  forti- 
fication ran  down  from  the  Kasha  on  both  sides,  forming, 
with  the  sea,  a  triangle  which  enclosed  the  ancient  city. 

[43] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

Then  the  soldier  delivered  his  people  over  to  Mohamed 
again. 

*'  Madame  is  content?  **  he  asked,  showing  his  white  teeth. 

'  *  We  were  too  hurried.  The  view  was  beautiful.  I  was 
content  with  that  and  the  minaret,  but  not  with  the  thought 
of  the  dreadful  things  that  have  happened  here." 

''No,  Madame!'' 

They  were  soon  on  their  way  to  Belcourt.  The  guide 
pointed  to  a  gate  in  a  high  white  wall,  and  Adrian  stopped 
the  car  before  it. 

' '  Here,  Madame,  is  the  cemetery  where  the  rich  ladies  come 
on  Fridays,  but  I  cannot  go  in  with  Madame,  but  must  wait 
outside.'* 

''  Do  you  know  it  is  past  lunch  time?  "  exclaimed  the  Com- 
mander. **  Do  you  not  prefer  going  with  me  to  partake  of  a 
fresh  lobster,  or  a  broiled  sea  fish,  followed  by  a  succulent 
green  salad,  to  visiting  cemeteries?  " 

The  Lady  paid  no  attention  to  his  flippancy,  but  gathered 
up  her  book  and  camera  and  descended  from  the  car,  which 
at  once  rolled  away.  Two  or  three  antique  omnibuses  —  to 
which  were  hitched  lanky  white  horses  —  waited  before  the 
gate.  One,  crowded  with  white  bales  of  women,  closely  veiled, 
was  preparing  to  depart,  while  the  other  omnibuses  waited  for 
their  clients  who  were  inside  the  cemetery.  The  Other-one 
passed  under  the  archway  of  the  gate  and  went  up  the  flight 
of  stone  steps  at  the  right,  leading  to  a  pathway  which  was 
lined  with  beggars,  more  ragged,  more  mildewed  and  rusty, 
more  stained  and  bespattered,  if  possible,  than  those  she  had 
passed  in  the  cemetery  near  the  Kasba.  Some,  blind  of  eyes 
and  crooked  of  backs,  with  distorted  limbs,  seemed  in  the  last 
stages  of  misery  and  wretchedness.  They  whined  out  their 
cries  of  '*  Meskin,  meskin,^^  like  the  others,  but  the  Other-one 
had  exhausted  all  her  sous,  and  moreover  she  was  becoming 
a  little  hardened ;  so  she  passed  on  up  the  path,  which  opened 
into  a  large  but  yet  more  circumscribed  place  than  the  other 
cemetery,  walled  in  everywhere  and  with  hills  rising  up  at 
the  back  to  Mustapha  Superieur.    All  was  as  rank  in  grass, 

[44] 


ARAB   CEMETERIES 

as  unkempt,  as  the  other.  There  were  more  trees,  eucalyptus, 
cypress,  some  graceful  palms,  and  plane-trees  to  fleck  with 
shadows  the  gravestones,  some  of  which  were  of  marble  carved 
finely  and  cut  into  the  shape  of  turbans  and  rounds.  Many 
of  them  leaned  at  all  angles,  at  the  ends  of  their  platforms 
of  blue  and  white  tiles,  or  their  oblong  boxes  of  wood.  At 
the  left  was  a  mosque  with  a  beautiful  minaret,  decorated 
with  the  fanciful  brick  diaper-work  of  Moorish  designs.  In 
the  grass  or  on  the  platforms  sat  here,  also,  groups  of  women 
as  hilarious  as  the  others;  but  these  groups  were  of  more 
thrilling  interest,  for  they  were  all  unveiled  and  had  thrown 
off  their  enshrouding  mantles,  except  a  few  who  were  prepar- 
ing to  depart. 

The  Other-one  hastily  hid  her  camera,  as  some  of  the  ladies 
looked  up,  apparently  startled  when  they  saw  her,  and  they 
reached  quickly  over  as  if  to  don  their  veils  and  mantles ;  but 
as  she  turned  away,  they  seemed  to  think  better  of  it  and  re- 
sumed their  former  attitudes.  A  lanky  boy  with  sharp  eyes, 
wearing  long  baggy  trousers  and  a  blue  jacket  gayly  em- 
broidered in  red,  rushed  up  to  the  Other-one  and  cried  out  in 
French,  as  he  pointed  to  the  kodak  showing  under  her  jacket, 
**  It  is  forbidden  here,  it  is  forbidden  to  photograph.*'  There- 
upon he  attached  himself  to  her,  making  her  life  a  burden 
while  she  stayed  there.  He  would  retire  for  a  moment  or  so, 
then  pounce  upon  her  from  behind  a  tree,  or  a  high  tomb- 
stone, grimacing  wildly  at  her,  when  she,  thinking  herself 
unobserved,  had  brought  out  her  kodak  and  pointed  it  at  an 
especially  interesting  group.  When  he  had  withdrawn,  as 
she  thought,  she  seated  herself  on  a  blue-and-white-tiled  grave 
and  prepared  to  watch  for  any  especial  beauties  resembling 
the  houris  described  in  Oriental  tales. 

When  the  women  saw  their  boyish  guardian  making  his 
sallies  upon  the  enemy,  they  lost  their  watchfulness  and  went 
on  enjoying  themselves  without  the  smothering  veil.  More 
gay  butterflies  of  children  pranced  and  gambolled  around  over 
the  graves.  One  pretty  little  creature  in  her  frolics  came  near 
the  Other-one.    She  was  dressed  like  a  character  at  a  fancy 

[45] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

dress  fall,  in  a  long  pink  satin  gown,  embroidered  in  silver, 
with  white  satin  slippers  on  her  feet,  and  a  spangled  red 
gauze  scarf  wound  around  her  graceful  little  head.  She  had 
beautiful  great  dark  eyes,  skin  of  a  rich  creamy  tint,  and  soft 
rose  in  her  rounded  cheeks.  She  frisked  like  a  young  fawn 
and  seemed  the  very  impersonation  of  youth  and  happiness. 
Other  little  children  capered  around  with  her,  but  she  sur- 
passed them  all  in  her  childish  grace  and  beauty  and  her  gay 
pranks.  In  trying  to  escape  the  clutch  of  an  ugly  little  cross- 
eyed boy,  she  fell  headlong  over  a  box-like  grave  and  into  the 
rank  grass  on  the  other  side.  A  sulky-looking  young  woman, 
in  a  heavily  embroidered  tunic,  wearing  necklaces,  bracelets, 
and  brooches  of  emeralds  and  pearls,  got  up  from  the  blue- 
tiled  platform  where  she  was  sitting  and  eating  sweetmeats, 
seized  the  little  beauty,  and  shook  her  until  her  poor  little 
teeth  rattled,  muttering  harshly  to  her  the  while.  The  Other- 
one  turned  now  to  examine  some  of  the  women  near  her.  Now 
they  were,  so  to  speak,  in  deshabille  before  her.  Again  she 
wished  to  discover  if  there  might  be  any  resembling  the 
fascinating  houris  promised  to  the  faithful  in  the  Moham- 
medan heaven.  She  was  disappointed  to  find  in  the  gayly 
dressed  and  jewel-bedecked  females,  with  their  henna-stained 
nails,  heavy  faces,  muddy  complexions,  and  dull  eyes,  no 
trace  of  beauty.  Perhaps  there  were  three  or  four,  in  the 
twenty  or  thirty  around  her,  who  could  be  called  passable- 
looking.  One  had  dark,  dreamy  eyes,  and  her  face  was  young 
and  fresh,  but  her  mouth  was  wide  and  coarse,  and  she  showed 
discolored  teeth  when  she  smiled.  Another  had  a  beautiful 
creamy  complexion  and  a  small  mouth,  with  red,  full  lips, 
but  her  nose  was  flat.  As  to  the  older  women,  they  were  all 
ugly  in  different  degrees;  but  what  was  more  pitiful  than 
their  ugliness  was  the  dull,  unintelligent  look  on  their  faces ; 
even  the  prettiest  ones  were  heavy. 

' '  Go  away  now !  ' '  cried  the  lady  to  the  nagging  boy,  who 
—  reinforced  by  three  or  four  others  smaller  than  himself, 
and  all  clad  in  trousers  bagging  behind  to  their  heels  —  made 
a  sudden  jump  at  her  and  tried  to  snatch  away  her  kodak. 

[46] 


V  »>» .♦ 


v.V^'' 


ARCHED    ENTBANCE   WAY    OF   A    TOMB 
AT  BELCOURT,  ALGIERS 


TOMB   AND   FOUNTAIN   IN   THE   ARAB   CEMETERY 
AT  BELCOURT 


ARAB   CEMETERIES 

*  *  No !  I  do  not  go  away,  * '  shrieked  the  boy.  *  *  You  are 
sitting  on  my  father's  grave." 

**  Very  well!  I  will  not  sit  upon  it;  I  will  go  away  at 
once/*  and  she  started  up;  but  her  tormentor  prepared  to 
dog  her  footsteps,  when  there  hove  in  sight  an  ancient  man 
with  long  grizzled  beard  and  a  huge  turban.  He  bore  down 
upon  the  boys,  who,  when  they  saw  him,  disappeared  as  if  by 
magic.  The  old  man  stopped  to  cuff  some  small  children  who 
were  throwing  stones  at  a  grave.  He  was  evidently  the  guar- 
dian of  the  place,  and  so  old  and  withered  that  the  women 
paid  him  no  more  attention  than  they  would  have  paid  to  a 
buzzing  insect. 

**  So  there  were  fathers  here,  and  sons,  and  surely  some 
mothers,  sisters,  and  daughters  —  by  the  plain  tombstones  ** 
—  (the  men*s  were  cut  in  turban  shape,  some  one  had  told 
the  Other-one).  Hitherto  she  had  thought  of  those  buried 
here  as  only  sensual  men  who  in  their  lives  could  have  as 
many  wives  as  they  desired  and  could  divorce  any  of  them  at 
pleasure,  and  who  had  believed  in  only  a  sensual  heaven. 
Instead  of  feeling  any  sadness  here,  the  Other-one  had  had  a 
sense  of  indignation  and,  too,  she  rejoiced  that  the  women  were 
making  merry.  Now  she  thought,  **  Perhaps  there  are  some 
who  mourn  for  fathers,  for  sons,  or  brothers  here!  ** 

As  she  looked  more  closely  at  one  or  two  graves  near  her, 
she  observed  a  cross-piece  on  the  box-like  enclosure,  at  one 
end,  with  a  round  hole  full  of  water. 

**  I  wonder  what  those  holes  are  for.  They  have  put  no  flow- 
ers in  any  of  them.'*  A  slender  woman  near  her  had  a  rather 
intelligent  face,  so  the  Other-one  ventured  to  ask  her  in 
French.  The  woman  at  once  replied  in  that  language. 
**  Those  are  for  the  birds,  Madame;  if  they  come  to  drink  of 
the  water  at  the  grave,  it  counts  much  for  the  dead.  *  * 

**  Thank  you!  **  said  the  Other-one,  and  seated  herself  to 
read  a  little  from  the  book  she  carried,  prepared  also  to  take 
a  snapshot  when  the  chance  came. 

**  The  mosque  in  the  cemetery  at  Belcourt  contains  the 
tomb  of  a  very  celebrated  saint,  Abd-er-Rahman-bou  Kobrin, 

[47] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

who  lived  in  the  Djurdjura  Mountains,  at  the  close  of  the 
eighteenth  century,  and  founded  a  very  powerful  religious 
order, —  the  Rahmania, —  second  only  to  that  of  the  renowned 
Sidi-Okba." 

The  Other-one  turned  to  look  at  the  minaret  where  the 
tomb  was  enclosed.  Near  it  was  a  fanciful  kiosk,  having 
horseshoe  arches  and  slender  columns.  Low  walls  ran  from 
this,  with  a  fountain  in  the  centre,  with  lovely  twisted  columns 
upholding  a  small  dome ;  below  was  the  basin  of  the  fountain 
against  the  wall.  Through  the  trunks  of  the  tall  cedar-trees 
inside  the  wall,  one  could  see  a  long  Moorish-arched  colon- 
nade with  white  pillars ;  back  of  this  a  green  hill  rose,  throw- 
ing the  white  colonnade  into  relief,  making  a  charming  effect. 
Above  the  low,  open  walls,  the  white-turbaned  tops  of  graves 
could  be  seen ;  and  there  were  white  figures  passing  along  by 
the  graves  and  sitting  down  by  them.  Curious  to  see  what 
else  there  might  be  in  the  enclosure,  the  lady  arose  and  went 
up  some  steps  at  the  side,  leading  to  the  place.  At  one  side 
was  the  koubba  of  the  saint,  with  a  band  of  Moorish  stucco- 
work  all  around  the  entrance  door.  Some  women  were  going 
and  coming  from  this  with  their  lia'iks  well  drawn  around 
them.  The  colonnade  ran  from  the  koubba  around  three  sides 
and  was  ornamented  simply  with  bands  of  arabesque  work 
above  and  between  the  arches.  The  ground  just  before  this 
was  full  of  tombs  with  blue  and  white  tiles  or  marble  plat- 
forms; these  had  no  headstones,  but  there  was  an  oblong 
cavity  in  the  centre  of  each  flat  tomb  with  grass  growing  in  it. 
On  nearly  every  one  there  were  branches  of  evergreen  and 
bunches  of  withered  flowers. 

Groups  of  women  sat  under  the  arched  colonnade,  while  a 
few  others  wandered  among  the  tombs,  and  most  of  them 
were  shrouded  in  their  hdiJcs,  though  they  left  their  faces  ex- 
posed. This  place,  lifted  above  the  other  unkempt  ground, 
was  in  bettei-  order,  and  seemed  to  be  the  aristocratic  part, 
set  aside  from  the  common  herd.  The  Other-one  thought  the 
ladies  here  had  a  more  elegant  and  well-to-do  look,  though 
she  could  discover  no  beauty  among  them.    Their  faces  were 

,     •  [48] 


ARAB   CEMETERIES 

pale  and  rather  refined,  and  they  had  a  languid  air.  As  she 
picked  her  way  over  the  flat  graves,  a  wretched  creature  de- 
tached itself  from  a  group  from  w^hom  she  was  evidently  beg- 
ging. She  hobbled  with  difficulty  over  to  the  Other-one  and 
held  out  for  alms  one  palsied,  shaking  hand,  while  with  the 
other  she  clutched  to  her  wrinkled  breast  a  mantle  —  one  mass 
of  patched  rags  —  which  scarcely  covered  her  swollen  limbs, 
and  her  bare,  distorted  feet  showed  below.  Her  head,  around 
which  a  discolored,  filthy  rag  was  bound,  shook  as  if  with 
ague.  A  more  wretched  object  it  w^as  not  possible  to  imagine. 
The  Other-one  dropped  her  last  franc  into  the  trembling  hand 
and  fled  across  the  graves,  only  to  encounter  at  the  other  side, 
another  miserable  creature,  swollen  out  of  all  semblance  to  a 
human  being.  She  was  blind  and  lame,  and  a  small,  dark- 
eyed,  heedless  girl,  whose  gay  red  gown  contrasted  vividly 
with  the  miserable  rags  of  the  decrepit  woman,  led  her  in 
jerks  around  the  graves  where  the  other  women  were. 

It  was  more  than  the  Other-one  could  bear,  and,  with 
nothing  to  bestow  on  the  pitiful  object,  she  turned  and  almost 
ran  over  the  low  graves  to  the  door  of  the  tomb,  and  entered 
into  a  long,  low  room,  very  stuffy  and  dim,  so  that  she  could 
but  just  see  the  long  high  tomb  of  the  saint  covered  with 
draperies,  and  a  great  turban  cut  in  the  end.  Some  women 
were  kneeling  there,  with  their  prayer  beads  in  their  hands, 
and  seemed  most  devout.  As  there  was  nothing  of  special 
interest  and  the  air  was  heavy,  the  Other-one  turned  away 
and  walked  out  and  down  the  path  to  the  gate,  but  paused  to 
look  back  a  moment  over  the  place  with  its  elegant  minaret, 
the  graceful  kiosk  and  arched  colonnade,  all  white,  the  dark 
green,  tall  cedars,  the  plane-trees,  the  gay  groups — the  sun- 
shine and  shade  flecking  all ;  but  it  seemed  no  longer  a  peace- 
ful place  to  her,  for  her  heart  was  pierced  with  the  thoughts 
of  the  wretched  creatures  she  had  seen. 

She  found  the  car  at  the  gate,  the  Commander  having  a 
satisfied  air,  as  if  he  had  lunched  well.  **  I  have  good  news 
for  you,**  he  said.  **  We  can  get  some  rooms  in  the  hotel  at 
Mustapha  Superieur  to-night.'* 

[49] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

*  *  Delightful !  ' '  answered  the  Other-one  absently. 

**  Now  to  what  cemeteries  do  you  wish  to  go,"  asked  the 
Commander,  as  Adrian  started  the  car.  * '  Jewish,  Protestant, 
Catholic,  or  what?  " 

*'  I  find  no  pleasure  in  cemeteries,  as  you  seem  to  imagine, 
but  I  am  in  pursuit  of  knowledge  of  Mohammedan  customs," 
returned  the  Lady  loftily.  ' '  I  have  no  desire  to  see  the  ceme- 
teries of  other  faiths.  Now  I  want  to  go  to  some  place  where 
it  is  peaceful  and  quiet,  and  where  there  is  nothing  to  make 
the  heart  ache,"  she  said  weariedly,  turning  to  Mohamed, 
who,  half  comprehending,  said: 

**  Madame  can  go  now  to  the  Jardin  d'Essai,  for  it  is  near; 
then  Madame  may  have  time  for  a  visit  to  the  Museum  before 
it  closes." 

So  they  went  down  the  streets  and  soon  passed  in  through 
the  entrance  gate  to  the  Jardin  d'Essai,  or  Botanical  Garden. 

The  Jardin  d'Essai  is  not  really  a  garden,  nor  could  one 
say  it  was  a  park,  for  it  is  not  very  big.  Here  grow  all  va- 
rieties of  palms,  some  of  wonderful  height  and  luxuriance. 
The  Other-one's  desire  to  know  something  about  everything, 
was  excited  by  seeing  many  trees  about  which  she  knew  noth- 
ing. Then  said  Mohamed:  **  I  will  go,  Madame,  to  find  a 
man  who  works  here.  He  knows  everything,  and  will  tell 
Madame  much." 

He  soon  returned  with  a  short,  thin  man  in  spectacles,  with 
dusty  shoes  and  hands,  and  introduced  him  as  Monsieur  Ver- 
deau.  Getting  out  of  the  car,  the  Commander  and  the  lady 
followed  the  guidance  of  this  man,  and  were  rejoiced  to  find 
they  could  understand  his  very  passable  English,  which,  he 
said,  he  had  learned  while  working  on  some  gardens  in 
England. 

He  took  them  first  down  a  beautiful  shady  avenue  of  palm- 
trees  which  he  said  were  alternately  African  and  Japanese 
palms.  In  the  middle  of  one  avenue  was  a  lovely  cascade,  and 
this  avenue  ran  on  down  to  the  sea.  M.  Verdeau  said  that 
this  garden  was  a  sort  of  home  for  trees  and  shrubs  of  a  more 
or  less  tropical  character.    Here  they  were  trained  to  endure 

[50] 


ARAB   CEMETERIES 

another  climate.  Nowhere  could  be  found,  grouped  together, 
such  a  complete  and  valuable  collection  of  the  old  and  the 
new  continents.  Here  were  the  celebrated  Yuccas  from  Caro- 
lina, Brazil,  and  Texas,  also  the  Stretttza  and  the  Strelitza 
Regina,  remarkable  species  of  the  Cape  Banana  trees;  then 
the  Ravenela  from  Madagascar,  which  is  called  in  its  country 
the  traveller's  fountain,  having  a  provision  of  water  at  its 
roots  for  the  thirsty  traveller.  The  palm-trees,  he  said,  were 
cultivated  on  a  large  scale  and  shipped  wholesale  to  almost 
every  part  of  Europe,  and  their  sale  brought  the  Compagnie 
Generale  Algerienne  a  revenue  of  four  thousand  pounds  a 
year.  Tangerine  orange-trees  were  also  exported  in  large 
quantities. 

The  party  wandered  on,  the  Commander  rejoicing  in  the 
information  imparted;  and  they  came  to  a  most  magnificent 
avenue  of  India  rubber-trees,  called  here  **  pagoda  fig-trees," 
because  they  resemble,  in  their  full  growth,  the  pagodas  of 
Pegu  and  Benares.  One  has  a  height  of  fifty-six  feet  and  a 
girth  of  twenty-three  feet. 

When  they  reached  the  alley  of  bamboos,  the  Other-one 
thought  she  had  never  seen  anything  so  graceful  as  these 
bamboos  with  soft  green,  lace-like  branches  bending  over  the 
pathway.  Though  they  had  been  but  a  short  time  in  the  gar- 
den, Monsieur  Verdeau  seemed  to  think  his  duty  ended,  and 
he  bade  them  adieu,  as  there  was  something  particular  de- 
manding his  attention. 

**  I  am  famished,'*  cried  the  Other-one.  **  I  don't  believe 
I  can  go  to  another  place  until  I  have  a  sandwich  or  a  cup 
of  tea!" 

Upon  being  interrogated  Mohamed  smiled  delightedly 
and  mysteriously,  then  led  them  down  the  long  avenue  of 
trees  and  across  the  road  to  an  oasis  of  palms,  where  they 
were  surprised  to  find  little  tables  spread  under  the  delight- 
ful shade.  Here  the  Commander  and  the  lady,  with  sighs  of 
satisfaction,  sat  down  at  one  of  the  tables  and  regaled  them- 
selves with  cups  of  fragrant  tea  and  thin  slices  of  bread  and 
butter  d  V Anglais,  which  a  deft  waiter  in  white  coat,  long 

[51] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

baggy  trousers,  and  scarlet  sash  and  fez,  brought  them.  The 
sea  stretched  away,  beautifully  opalescent  in  the  soft  after- 
noon sun,  and  they  saw  the  white  city  afar,  and  the  harbor 
with  the  boats,  which  cast  long  reflections  in  the  calm  water. 

Mohamed  reclined,  serenely  happy,  in  the  grass  at  some 
distance  from  them,  smoking  innumerable  cigarettes. 

'  *  What  is  there  more  to  see  to-day  ?  '  *  asked  the  Comman- 
der, when  they  had  finished  their  tea. 

*  *  Oh,  there  is  much.  We  must  rush  off  now  to  the  Museum, 
if  we  wish  to  see  it  before  it  closes.  You  know  you  adore 
museums.  Then  there  is  the  Governor 's  summer  palace,  since 
we  are  to  pass  it  on  the  way,  I  believe,  to  the  Museum.  To- 
morrow we  have  the  winter  palace  to  see,  the  cathedral,  the 
Archbishop 's  palace,  the  Old  Town,  the  —  ' ' 

* '  Stop !  Stop  !  ' '  cried  the  Commander.  ' '  You  have  laid 
out  enough  sight-seeing  for  a  week !  *  * 

"  But  we  ought  to  see  everything  in  the  town.'* 

They  were  soon  on  the  road  up  the  hills,  past  the  Moorish 
villas  embowered  in  their  trees;  and  they  came  to  a  stop  in 
front  of  a  flight  of  steps  leading  up  to  a  garden  where  there 
were  many  trees  with  benches  under  them,  from  which  one 
could  get  enchanting  glimpses  of  the  sea.  Here  sat  some 
French  and  Arab  nurses  with  their  charges.  There  were,  in 
various  parts  of  the  grounds,  antique  jars  of  curious  shape, 
pieces  of  statuary,  evidently  all  excavated  and  more  or  less 
mutilated,  and  a  rude  prehistoric  dolmen  amongst  the  shrub- 
bery on  a  by-path.  The  Museum  is  a  one-story  building  in 
Moorish  style,  surrounding  a  court.  On  the  walls  of  the  vesti- 
bule are  hung  views  of  the  old-time  Algiers,  with  the  Kasba 
at  the  point  of  the  triangular  walls  running  to  the  sea.  The 
Commander  was  vividly  interested  as  they  passed  from  the 
court  into  room  after  room.  In  the  first  are  mosaics  of  pave- 
ments and  walls  found  in  Roman  ruins;  in  others,  heads, 
torsos,  full  length  statues,  sarcophagi,  pottery,  bronzes,  lamps, 
vases,  and  wine  jars,  all  coming  from  excavations  in  the  dif- 
ferent places  where  the  Romans  once  colonized, —  from  Cher- 
chel,  from  Timgad  and  Lambessa  and  even  from  Carthage. 

[52] 


ARAB   CEMETERIES 

*  *  I  had  no  idea  before  that  the  Romans  had  left  such  traces 
in  Africa.  We  must  surely  go  to  some  of  the  ancient  cities 
which  have  been  excavated/*  said  the  Commander. 

In  other  rooms  objects  of  Berber  art  are  shown, —  rugs, 
stuffs,  pottery  of  quaint  and  effective  shape  and  design,  also 
some  specimens  of  Hispano-Mauresque  work,  and  some  Ara- 
bic work  in  beautiful  old  tiles,  and  stucco  like  that  at  the 
Alhambra.  In  one  of  these  rooms,  the  Other-one  stopped, 
horrified  to  see  in  a  case  the  cast  of  a  figure  doubled  up  as  if 
in  mortal  agony. 

**  This  must  be  the  cast  taken  from  the  mould  found  of 
Geronimo,  the  Arab  Christian  martyr,'*  she  called  to  the 
Commander,  who  was  looking  with  great  interest  at  some 
Turkish  arms,  **  Come  here  while  I  tell  you  what  I  read 
about  him !  He  was  an  Arab  child  captured  by  the  Spaniards 
and  brought  up  in  the  Catholic  faith.  He  fell  into  the  hands 
of  his  own  people  and  was  made  a  Mohammedan ;  but  when 
he  grew  older,  his  heart  returned  to  the  Christian  belief.  He 
became  a  soldier,  went  to  Oran,  was  captured  by  the  pirates 
and  brought  to  Algiers.  The  Mohammedans  were  enraged  at 
his  being  a  renegade,  and  the  Governor  commanded  him  to  be 
thrown  alive  into  a  block  of  molten  concrete,  so  that  the  mass 
in  the  block  took  exactly  the  mould  of  his  body.  This  block 
was  built  into  the  walls  of  a  fort.  The  last  thing  Geronimo 
said  was, '  I  am  a  Christian,  and  a  Christian  I  will  die.  *  This 
happened  in  the  Fall  of  1569.  For  a  long  time  this  was  sup- 
posed to  be  a  legend,  until,  when  the  Turkish  fort  was  de- 
stroyed, the  skeleton  was  found  imbedded  in  the  cement. 
This  cast  was  taken  by  pouring  plaster  in  the  hole.  The  origi- 
nal block  is  in  the  Cathedral  in  one  of  the  chapels.  But  is 
not  this  a  gruesome  thing?  It  makes  me  heartsick.  Let  us 
get  out  into  the  fresh  air  and  look  at  the  beautiful,  peaceful 
sea!*' 

They  came  out  and  walked  to  the  other  side  of  the  build- 
ing, where,  against  the  wall,  were  several  curious  carved 
stones.  Among  others,  two  or  three  upright,  in  shape  like 
our    gfrave-stones.      They    interested    the    Commander    very 

[53] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

much.  '*  I  do  not  remember  to  have  seen  anything  like  them 
anywhere,*'  he  said.  These  stones  are  about  four  feet  high 
and  divided  into  three  compartments.  The  lower  has  a  relief, 
rudely  cut,  of  an  animal  like  an  ox;  in  the  middle  compart- 
ment are  the  busts  of  a  man  and  a  woman,  apparently 
portraits.  The  upper  compartment  has  what  is  probably  in- 
tended for  a  deity. 

**  What  can  they  be!  *'  exclaimed  the  Other-one.  *'  Let  me 
run  in  and  find  the  director  and  ask  him.  * ' 

She  soon  returned  accompanied  by  a  tall  man  wearing 
spectacles,  who  informed  them :  *  *  These  come  from  Timgad 
and  Lambessa,  once  flourishing  Roman  towns,  and  which  now 
have  many  Roman  remains.  They  were  votive  offerings 
placed  in  the  temples  there,  and  to  whatever  god  the  temple 
might  be  erected.  The  busts  in  relief  are  those  of  the  donor 
and  his  wife,  the  god  above,  and  the  animal  sacrificed  to  him, 
below." 

When  the  two  came  out  Mohamed  appeared  to  put  in  a 
plea  that  they  should  go  at  once,  as  it  was  getting  late,  to  see 
the  most  beautiful  of  summer  palaces  —  that  of  the  Governor, 
quite  near. 

*  *  Let  us  go  at  once,  * '  said  the  Other-one. 

The  beautiful  Moorish  building  stands  in  the  midst  of  a 
luxuriant  park,  with  tropical  plants  and  gay  beds  of  flowers. 
Tall  banana-trees  with  ragged  amber  and  green  leaves  grow 
before  the  entrance  door,  and  high  date-palms,  and  dark 
cedars  contrast  their  foliage  near.  There  are  colonnades 
above  and  below,  and  the  elegant  slender  columns  uphold  the 
fancifully  decorated  Moorish  arches. 

Our  tourists  went  up  the  walk.  Two  or  three  Spahis  in  red 
and  blue  embroidered  costumes,  with  the  baggy  trousers  and 
snow-white  hdiks,  stood  like  gorgeously  plumaged  birds  be- 
fore the  short  flight  of  broad  marble  steps  leading  up  to  a 
tiled  terrace,  where  were  a  fountain  and  great  jars  of  tropical 
plants  on  pedestals.  These  men  seemed  to  be  doing  nothing 
but  making  pictures  of  themselves.  They  looked  supercili- 
ously at  the  newcomers,  while  Mohamed  turned  hastily  back, 

[54] 


ARAB   CEMETERIES 

and  went  to  the  small  lodge  near  the  entrance  gate.  He  soon 
returned  with  a  plump  little  French  woman,  who  led  them 
into  the  house  and  through  some  rooms  with  lovely  arabesque 
stucco  on  the  walls,  and  into  a  court,  tiled  and  glassed  over, 
a  gallery  with  slender  columns  running  around  the  second 
story.  The  rooms  had  no  rugs  and  but  little  furniture,  their 
decoration  giving  them  their  charm.  She  led  them  to  the 
great  banquet  hall,  and  out  onto  the  corridor  running 
around,  where  they  looked  down  into  a  court.  **  This  is  all 
covered  over  when  the  Governor  gives  his  annual  ball,  and  all 
is  most  beautiful  and  most  magnificent  with  the  lights  every- 
where and  the  ladies  in  wonderful  gowns,  and  the  officers  in 
their  uniforms,  all  gold  braid  and  decorations.  Then  outside, 
it  is  as  I  think  paradise  must  be,  with  all  the  red,  blue,  and 
yellow  lights.  All  the  arches  too,  here,  have  electric  lights 
around  them,  and  the  palace  is  as  if  it  were  made  of  fire. 
Oh,  if  Madame  could  but  see  it!  "  and  she  clasped  her  hands 
and  raised  here  eyes  heavenwards,  ecstatically. 

*  *  Who  comes  to  these  balls  ?  *  *  asked  the  Other-one. 

**  Many  French  people  with  the  officers,  Madame,  and  some 
foreigners,  but  the  most  beautiful  to  see  are  the  great  chiefs 
of  Algerie,  Aghas,  and  Bach-Aghas  (governors),  who  are  all 
summoned  to  this  ball.  They  wear  magnificent  clothes  and 
wonderful  jewellery  and  French  decorations,  and  make  the 
ball  more  splendid  and  magnificent.  I  have  a  corner  where  I 
can  see  everything,  and  no  one  knows  I  am  there.  When  all 
is  over,  the  beautiful  music  ended,  the  lights  out,  and  the 
wonderful  people  gone,  the  darkness  comes,  I  feel  as  if  I  had 
had  a  dream  and  gone  to  paradise,  which  I  must  think  can- 
not be  more  beautiful." 

Then  the  Motorists,  weary  with  sight-seeing,  went,  with  the 
happy  Mohamed  to  point  the  way  out,  to  Birkadem,  up 
hills,  past  divine  gardens  where  crocuses  and  masses  of 
purple  and  white  iris  were  in  blossom,  and  the  almond-trees 
were  like  pink  snow.  They  caught  glimpses  of  the  sea  over 
the  lush  green  of  the  trees.  It  had  light  like  the  shimmer  of 
opals,  in  the  late  afternoon  sun.     They  saw  the  beautiful 

[55] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

curve  of  the  Bay  of  Mustapha,  with  the  filmy  purple  moun- 
tains beyond,  the  snow  of  the  peaks  tinged  with  the  crimson 
of  the  dropping  sun ;  those  peaks  that  gave  the  Other-one  that 
thrill  when  she  first  saw  them.  There  is  a  pretty  Moorish 
fountain  in  the  square  of  the  town  of  Birkadem,  and  a  fort 
—  the  military  prison  —  crowning  a  hill  above  the  town. 

They  turned  back  after  a  glorious  ride,  and  when  it  was 
growing  late  they  went  by  the  ravine  of  the  Femme  Sauvage, 
a  picturesque  route  with  great  rocks  and  trees,  gloomy  now 
with  the  waning  light ;  they  turned  up  by  the  Colonne  Voirol, 
and  so  came  down  to  their  paradise  and  descended  from  the 
car,  a  weary,  but  contented  party. 

They  found  the  pretty  Marguerite, —  Adrian's  wife,  who 
had  come  to  serve, —  had  arranged  all  the  household  goods 
they  had  brought  from  home,  in  a  charming  room,  high  up 
over  the  garden  and  overlooking  it  and  the  terrace.  Wide 
windows  opened  to  the  glorious  view  tinged  with  the  last  rays 
of  the  setting  sun,  and  a  cool  breeze  brought  in  the  fragrance 
of  the  flowers  and  the  odor  of  the  sea.  All  the  noise  of  the 
toiling  city  was  subdued  to  a  faint  murmur.  The  hoarse 
whistle  of  an  outgoing  or  an  incoming  steamer;  the  distant 
toot  of  a  motor  car ;  the  light  laughter  and  talk  of  some  young 
girls  wandering  in  the  garden  below,  were  all  the  sounds  that 
came  to  their  ears,  and  served  but  to  emphasize  the  quiet  of 
the  place.  So  they  slept  well  that  night,  away  from  the  clang, 
the  tumult  of  the  Place  du  Gouvernement. 


156] 


CHAPTER  IV 

THE  PENON  —  ADMIRALTY  —  A  VISIT  TO  THE  OLD  TOWN  —  A 
GLIMPSE  OP  THE  ARCHBISHOP 'S  PALACE,  AND  THE  WINTER 
PALACE   OF    THE   GOVERNOR 

THE  next  morning,  while  the  Commander  was  buried  in 
his  maps,  the  Other-one  sat  sipping  her  coffee  at  a  little 
table  before  the  wide-opened  windows.  She  regaled  her  eyes 
with  the  enchanting  view  over  the  cypress  and  palm-trees  of 
the  garden,  across  the  silver  blue  of  the  bay,  to  where  faint 
snow-peaks  showed  themselves  in  the  rosy  mauve  of  the  morn- 
ing fog.    After  a  prolonged  study,  the  Commander  looked  up. 

*  *  My  plan  is  to  get  out  of  here  day  after  to-morrow ;  go  to 
Cherchel  by  Tipaza;  see  the  strange  ruin  of  the  Tomb  of 
the  Christian ;  come  back  by  Blida  and  the  wonderful  Gorge 
of  the  Chiflfa  —  about  which  I  have  been  reading.  We  can  do 
this  easily  in  two  days.  It  is  only  about  a  hundred  and  seven- 
teen kilometres  to  Cherchel  from  here.  We  can  rest  a  day,  if 
you  wish,  after  our  return,  then  go  to  Bou-Saada,  which  is 
the  interesting  country  of  the  —  How  do  you  call  them? — 
Ouled  Nails.  It  is  the  place  from  which  the  dancing  girls 
come.  I  have  looked  all  up  on  the  maps.  We  shall  find  the 
roads  good  everywhere,  so  let  us  get  off,  if  possible,  the  day 
after  to-morrow !  * ' 

So  they  picked  up  their  wraps  and  went  down  to  the  ter- 
race of  the  hotel,  to  await  their  car.  Happy  groups  were 
sunning  themselves  there ;  some  stretched  out  on  the  comfort- 
able wicker  chairs;  but  the  new  arrivals,  judging  by  their 
joyous  satisfaction  in  the  spring-like  aspect  of  everything, 
and  the  warm  sun  gilding  all,  could  not  rest,  but  were  wan- 
dering in  the  garden  or  hanging  over  the  little  tables  of  the 
Arabs,  spread  like  webs  to  catch  the  unwary  flies.  The  Ori- 
ental jewellery,  the  gay  knick-knacks  in  metal  and  silver,  the 

[57] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

rugs  of  many  colors,  looked  more  entrancing  than  ever  in  the 
morning  sun. 

They  found  Mohamed  an  embodied  smile,  and  handsome 
as  a  prince,  in  a  crimson  jacket  embroidered  in  black,  with 
full  trousers  of  the  same  color,  and  patent  leather  slippers 
with  the  whitest  of  hose. 

They  climbed  into  the  car  and  bowled  down  the  hills  by 
the  boulevards  to  the  sea,  and  found  what  seemed  the  same 
crowd  as  yesterday,  lounging  over  the  balustrades  and  look- 
ing always  down  on  the  busy  harbor.  The  car  turned  the  Rue 
de  I'Amiraute,  overlooking  the  inner  harbor,  which  is  between 
the  building  of  the  Direction  of  the  Port  and  the  mole  on 
which  stands  the  lighthouse  of  the  Penon.  This  harbor  is 
dotted  with  the  many  fishing-boats  and  pleasure  craft  which 
are  anchored  there.  Our  party  alighted  near  the  stone  steps 
leading  down  to  the  quay.  The  exquisite  Moorish  house, 
the  residence  of  the  Rear- Admiral  commanding  the  marine, 
is  on  the  right  of  the  wall  some  distance  on.  They 
passed  by  this  Admiralty,  as  it  is  called,  then  went  on 
toward  the  Peilon.  There  are  some  old  Moorish  buildings 
around  here  and  some  bits  of  Moorish  work  spared,  as  yet, 
by  the  French.  In  one  wall  they  saw  a  typical  Moorish 
fountain  with  the  flat  surface  decorated  with  carved  marble 
reliefs  and  just  a  spout  for  water.  Now  they  turned  to 
the  right  and  went  on  down  through  a  gate,  then  on  by 
where  the  French  torpedo  boats  were  anchored,  and  walked 
along  until  they  came  to  an  arch  in  a  corner,  which  the  guide 
said  was  the  "  Tiger  or  Leopard  Gateway,"  opening  into 
the  Bureau  of  the  Marine.  It  is  seventeenth  century  work, 
carved  of  white  marble  with  red,  green,  and  blue  leopards 
on  it,  and  an  Arab  inscription.  It  is  celebrated  for  the  fact 
that  while  Mohammedan  law  does  not  permit  the  represen- 
tation of  living  beings,  they  have  invented  a  legend  that 
a  Persian  slave  did  the  work,  and  his  captors  found  it 
so  beautiful  that  they  allowed  it  to  remain.  The  Other- 
one  thought  it  curious,  and  rather  ugly  than  beautiful, 
although  one  writer  calls  it  ^'  surpassingly  lovely.*' 

[58  1 


THE   PENON 

Now  they  went  back  to  look  at  the  beautiful  white  light- 
house rising  on  the  part  left  of  the  old  Spanish  fort. 

*  *  They  say, ' '  observed  the  Other-one,  ' '  that  this  is  pre- 
cisely the  same  as  it  was  in  the  time  of  that  blood-thirsty  old 
pirate,  Khair-ed-Din.  I  *ve  been  reading  up  a  little  about 
this  Peiion.  When  the  Moors  were  driven  out  of  Spain,  the 
Algerines  were  frightened  into  erecting  big  batteries  all  along 
the  coast.  It  was  then  the  Spaniards  seized  the  small  island 
in  front  of  Algiers  and  built  this  Peiion  on  it  in  1510 ;  but  in 
1529  Khair-ed-Din  determined  to  take  it  at  whatever  cost. 
The  little  band  of  a  hundred  and  fifty  men  resisted  most 
gallantly,  but  alas!  when  the  Penon  was  at  last  taken  there 
were  only  thirty-five  warriors,  and  they,  with  the  iron  Com- 
mander, Martin  de  Vegas,  were  all  put  to  death.  The  blood- 
thirsty old  Khair-ed-Din  pulled  the  Spanish  castle  down  and 
joined  the  fortress  to  the  coast  by  a  jetty.  He  employed 
twenty  thousand  Christian  slaves  to  build  it.  On  the  only 
tower  left  of  the  fortress  the  present  lighthouse  was  erected. 
Now  civilization  has  transformed  the  nest  of  smugglers  into 
the  most  hospitable  of  cities.  *  * 

**  And  the  tower  is  one  hundred  and  twenty  feet  above  sea 
level  and  has  a  fixed  light  that  can  be  seen  for  fifteen  miles,** 
added  the  Commander.  **  Let  us  walk  over  toward  the 
lighthouse  and  view  it  as  near  as  we  can  go  to  it.** 

So  they  went  to  where  the  railed  walk  leads  up  to  the 
entrance  door  with  a  Spanish  coat-of-arms  over  it.  Then 
they  walked  up  the  long  rampe  of  the  Amiraute  on  Khair- 
ed-Din  *8  jetty,  and  passed  along  the  sea  wall  until  they 
came  opposite  the  great  white  tower,  and  they  leaned  over 
to  see  the  blue  sea  roll  up  and  break  into  foam  against 
the  rocks  on  which  the  bastion  was  built.  The  view  was 
ravishing. 

**  Madame,**  said  Mohamed,  now  drawing  near,  **  there 
is  much  to  see  in  the  town.  Here  is  nothing  but  the  sea 
and  the  Penon,  and  Madame  has  but  little  time.** 

So  they  let  him  go  in  search  of  the  car,  and  soon  were 
riding  up  the  Rue  de  la  Marine,  passing  the  Great  Mosque 

[59] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

with  its  beautiful  arcades  and  the  decrepit  beggars  squat- 
ting under  them.  They  came  into  the  busy  Rue  Bal-el-Oued, 
then  went  on  by  the  Rue  Divan  past  the  cathedral,  and  came 
into  the  Rue  Randon  in  the  native  quarter,  and  here  were  all 
kinds  of  native  specialties.  Mohamed  besought  his  people 
to  descend, — ' '  they  would  find  such  wonderful,  such  beau- 
tiful things  in  the  shops  here:  Arabic,  Moorish,  Kabyle, — 
so  cheap,  almost  given  away!'*  But  the  Commander  was 
deaf  to  his  entreaties  and  ordered  Adrian  to  move  on,  which 
he  did  with  difficulty,  the  street  was  so  crowded  with  all 
sorts  of  humanity.  It  was  fascinating  for  the  Other-one, 
this  view  of  a  really  Oriental  street.  The  shops  were  mere 
holes-in-the-wall.  In  one,  men  were  hammering  a  design 
in  copper  and  brass  vessels  of  graceful  shape;  at  another  a 
blear-eyed  old  man  was  embroidering  blue  velvet  slippers  in 
a  design  in  gold,  while  many  in  other  brilliant  colors  hung 
around.  Near,  in  just  a  square,  box-like  shop  with  a  plat- 
form jutting  out  —  as  in  most  of  the  others  —  for  the  would- 
be  purchasers  to  recline,  bargain  and  sip  the  coffee,  always 
offered  —  were  many  gay  red  and  yellow  slippers,  and  work- 
men finishing  some  up.  The  Other-one  wished  to  stop  and 
look  at  the  earrings,  bracelets,  and  brooches  of  gold  and 
silver  wire  which  a  dark-skinned  old  Jew  was  trying  to  show 
to  them,  but  the  Commander  said,  ''  Wait  until  we  reach  the 
Kabyle  country  for  your  jewellery.  All  this  is  modern 
trash.'' 

At  a  little  distance  farther  on,  they  alighted  near  a  street 
ascending  by  rude  stone  steps  and  dark  from  the  overhanging 
houses  almost  meeting  above,  with  only  a  strip  of  sky 
between.  The  projecting  upper  stories  of  the  houses  are 
held,  or  seem  to  be  held,  by  rows  of  poles  placed  close  together 
and  said  to  be  of  cedarwood.  The  narrow  streets  wind  and 
twist.  It  is  said  one  must  climb  five  hundred  steps  to  come 
out  at  the  top.  The  wall  spaces  of  the  houses  are  all  white- 
washed and  mostly  blank,  save  for  a  high  window  here  and 
there  screened  by  projecting  lattice-work.  The  other  win- 
dows are  mere  holes,  and  the  doors,  generally  in  the  darkest 

[60] 


THE    OLD    TOWN 

corner,  are  below  the  level  of  the  street.  They  are  the  only 
things  in  the  architecture  here  that  show  any  beauty,  and 
are  sometimes  very  fine,  decorated  with  bands  of  lovely 
arabesque  work.  Our  party,  conducted  by  the  all-knowing 
Mohamed,  walked  slowly  up  the  crooked  streets,  pausing 
often  to  take  breath  and  to  note  anything  curious  about 
them.  Here  were  no  carts,  nor  any  animal  but  the 
patient  donkeys  who  scrambled  up  or  down  the  toilsome  way, 
sometimes  laden  with  full  panniers,  or  with  a  humped-up 
man  or  woman,  shrouded  in  burnous  or  mantle,  on  their 
backs.  The  streets  are  too  narrow  and  steep  to  admit  any 
vehicles.  People  were  going  up  and  down  the  steps  and  were 
of  fascinating  interest.  Here  a  Moorish  woman,  clad  in  her 
huge  balloon  trousers,  closely  shrouded  in  her  mantle,  look- 
ing in  the  gloom  like  a  ghost,  skulked  by ;  now  a  grimy  beg- 
gar, a  mass  of  rags  and  sores;  now  a  group  of  grave 
patriarchal-looking  men,  with  their  fine  cloth  burnouses  and 
their  snow-white  turbans,  seeming  like  prophets  come  to 
preach  cleanliness  and  order.  Then,  walking  stealthily  along, 
casting  suspicious  looks  around,  an  old  Jew,  his  grizzled  hair 
straggling  out  from  under  his  turban;  dirty  little  boys  in 
nondescript  garments  or  nearly  naked,  and  pretty  little  girls 
—  but  unclean  and  unkempt  —  weaving  in  and  out  of  the 
groups,  here  and  there. 

Often  the  party  passed  a  cafe  Maure,  or  Arab  coffee  house, 
where  white-turbaned  and  red-fezzed  men  were  sipping  coffee 
and  the  air  was  blue  with  cigarette  smoke.  The  Commander 
paused  to  look  into  one.  There  were  mats  on  the  floor;  a 
blue-tiled  place,  built  up  against  the  wall  and  pierced  with 
holes,  held  the  burning  charcoal  where  they  made  the  coffee. 
Small  pots  and  many  cups  hung  near.  There  were  gaudy 
prints  on  the  walls,  some  curious  Arabic  inscriptions,  which 
the  guide  said  were  sentences  from  the  Koran;  and  there 
hung  also  the  pipes  for  smoking  hasheesh.  It  was  horribly 
hot  in  there,  and  many  were  taking  their  tiny  cups  of  coffee 
outside,  squatting  on  mats  with  little  tables  before  them, 
or  stretched  on  the  bare  ground. 

[61] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

**  I  have  been  told,"  said  the  Commander,  ''that  these 
cafes  are  an  institution  of  all  the  Arab  towns.  We  shall  see 
them  everywhere,  always  crowded;  some,  they  say,  are 
very  gorgeous,  where  the  rich  Arabs  go,  but  the  poorer  ones, 
like  this  one,  are  decorated  with  gaudy  chromos.  Each  cafe 
has  its  special  clients.  One  has  all  the  water  carriers;  you 
saw  some  of  them  in  the  streets  below,  with  brass  jars  of 
water,  offering  cups  of  it  to  the  passersby  or  rattling  the 
cups  to  attract  attention?  Then  the  Moors  go  to  another; 
the  fishermen  patronize  another;  and  the  sailors  have  their 
favorite  cafe.  Some  of  the  poor  Arabs  spend  their  day 
here,  after  work  is  finished.  They  have  no  other  home.  They 
bring  an  onion  or  two,  a  loaf  of  Arabian  bread,  and  a  jug 
of  water;  then  for  half  a  sou  they  get  a  cup  of  coffee.  At 
night  they  wrap  up  in  their  burnouses,  or  sacks  (you  have 
seen  some  of  the  poor  workmen  wrapped  in  a  common  coarse 
sack  simply  sewed  up  at  one  end),  the  poorest  kind  of  a 
wrap  but  as  near  a  burnous  as  they  can  afford.  These  poor 
fellows  spread  themselves  out  on  a  mat,  or  on  the  ground, 
for  the  night." 

*  *  I  see  you  are  picking  up  information  rapidly, ' '  said 
the  Other-one,  *' but  I  should  like  to  taste  the  coffee." 
Mohamed  here  came  up  with  two  tiny  cups  of  the  coffee, 
divining  her  wish.    She  swallowed  a  little  of  it. 

' '  It 's  awfully  sweet  and  so  muddy  with  coffee  grounds 
that  they  get  into  my  throat.  I  Ve  been  told,  however,  that 
people  learn  to  like  Turkish  coffee, —  as  I  suppose  this  is, — 
and  won't  take  any  other  after  dinner,  if  they  can  get  this." 

While  they  stopped,  Mohamed  had  hastily  swallowed  two 
or  three  cups  of  coffee  and  smoked  a  cigarette  secretly,  and 
after  handing  over  the  twenty-five  sous  for  all,  the  party 
went  on  up  the  narrow  street,  climbing  the  slippery  stone- 
paved  steps.  Coming  down  were  two  corpulent  women, 
masses  of  jelly-like  flesh,  each  wearing  a  funny  little  conical 
cap  on  one  side  of  her  head,  and  a  gay  silk  handkerchief 
tied  around;  but  their  chins  were  swathed  in  muslin,  which 
gave  them  the  appearance  of  having  the  toothache. 

[62] 


TTIK    "  LEOPAKP    TVIOR ,"   ALGIERS 


VIEW  OF  Tin:  .\i).\iii^\i;rv  and  1'k.n<j.\.  alhiers 


MINAKET  OF  THE  MOSQUE 

OF    SIDI-ABD-EE-BAHMAN, 

ALGIERS 


j^^iJU  ^g^ 


ENTRANCE  TO  THE  TOMB  OF  SIDI-ABD-EE-RAHMAN, 
ALGIERS 


THE    OLD    TOWN 

"What  are  those  women?''  the  Other-one  demanded  of 
Mohamed,  who  was  delighted  to  be  asked  any  question  he 
could  answer. 

**  They  are  Jewesses,  Madame,  but  not  now  in  their  finest 
dress,  Madame.  On  fete  days,  the  Jewesses  wear  most  beau- 
tiful clothes  of  silks  and  velvets,  if  they  are  rich,  all  embroid- 
ered in  gold,  with  silk  and  gold  sashes  and  much  splendid 
jewellery.    Madame  should  see  them.'' 

**  Who  are  those  beautiful-looking  men,  with  the  scarlet 
trousers,  embroidered  coats,  and  long  boots,  over  there  in  the 
cafe  at  the  corner  ?  ' ' 

**  They  are  the  spahis,  Madame,  the  native  cavalry." 

*'  And  the  men  in  green  turbans,  just  turning  the  corner 
yonder?  " 

**  They,  Madame,  have  been  on  a  pilgrimage  to  Mecca,  and 
some  are  descended  from  the  Prophet." 

So  there  was  a  constant  change  in  the  figures,  and  new 
combinations  came  into  view,  as  in  a  kaleidoscope,  as  they 
wended  up  the  narrow  streets.  At  the  darkest  corners,  how- 
ever, the  flitting  women,  all  in  white,  were  most  uncanny- 
looking;  as  sometimes  one  opened  a  door  in  the  wall  and 
slipped  through,  the  watchful  Other-one  caught  a  glimpse  of 
a  courtyard  and  gay-colored  tiles  and  twisted  columns,  and 
realized  there  might  be  something  of  beauty  behind  those 
closely  shut  doors;  for  it  was  like  a  glimpse  into  paradise, 
compared  with  the  slime  and  gloom  of  the  narrow  streets. 

**  How  I  should  like  to  get  behind  those  prison-like  doors 
and  see  the  fountains,  flowers,  and  trees,  the  wonderful  court- 
yards, the  marble  pillars,  and  the  old  tiles  which,  one  writer 
says,  are  in  the  houses  of  the  rich  Moors  here ;  and  which  I 
am  sure  is  true,  from  the  mere  glimpse  I  had  just  now.  I 
suppose  as  motorists  and  birds  of  passage,  we  have  no  time 
to  secure  any  influence  to  get  us  into  any  wealthy  Arab 
home,"  said  the  Other-one  to  the  Commander,  as  he  walked 
on.  **  But  at  any  rate  we  shall  see  some  Moorish  palaces, 
those  of  the  Governor  and  the  Archbishop." 

**  Come   ^,"  called  back  the  Commander,  as  he  paused, 

[63] 


K 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

panting,  on  some  steps  above  her.  ' '  We  must  get  to  those 
palaces  to-day/' 

Mohamed  now  led  them  round  a  corner  into  a  narrower 
and  darker  street  than  any  through  which  they  had  yet 
passed.  The  Other-one  paused  in  amazement  to  see  some  of 
the  doors  open,  giving  view  to  a  small  vestibule  with  stairs 
running  up  at  the  back.  At  these  doors  sat  some  most  sur- 
prising-looking women  or  girls  —  surprising  in  comparison 
with  the  veiled  phantoms  before  seen.  At  the  door  —  near 
which  the  Other-one  stopped  so  suddenly  that  the  Commander 
had  almost  fallen  over  her,  coming  up  somewhat  briskly  after 
his  rest  —  sat  a  painted  and  powdered  creature  most  wonder- 
ful to  view.  Long,  heavy,  painted  eyebrows  extended  from 
her  temples  over  the  eyes  and  met  over  the  nose.  Her  cheeks 
were  painted  vermilion.  Around  her  head  a  gaudy  blue-and- 
red  silk  handkerchief  was  bound,  with  gold  bangles  hanging 
from  it  over  her  forehead.  She  wore  a  pink  satin  long  tunic, 
embroidered  in  silver  tinsel.  Her  bare  ankles  were  decorated 
with  silver  anklets,  and  her  feet  thrust  into  red  velvet  slip- 
pers worked  in  gold  braid.  Her  hands  were  spread  out  before 
her,  and  the  nails  henna-tinted.  She  was  decked  out  to  the 
queen's  taste  in  rings,  bracelets,  necklaces,  and  brooches. 
The  gaudy  creature  leered  at  them  with  her  heavy  eyes, 
and  the  Other-one  felt  a  sensation  of  disgust  too  deep  to 
express.  The  same  scene  was  repeated  at  other  open  doors 
on  the  street,  varying  only  in  the  decoration  of  the  painted 
animal,  some  having  more  eyebrows,  and  more  vermilion  on 
their  cheeks. 

**  What  is  this  street,  and  what  are  these  women?  "asked 
the  Other-one,  turning  to  Mohamed,  who  had  remained  dis- 
creetly behind,  while  the  Commander  had  pushed  on,  with  a 
face  expressive  of  even  more  disgust  than  his  Lady's. 

**  This,  Madame,  is  the  street  of  the  bad  women." 

'  *  Oh !  but  why  did  you  bring  us  here  ?  ' ' 

*'  But  Madame  wished  to  see  everything." 

The  Other-one  plunged  on,  and  near  the  end  of  the  street 
she  observed  some  sodden-looking  men,  Italian     jT  Spanish, 

[64] 


THE    OLD    TOWN 

presumably,  from  their  unpicturesque  clothes,  skulking  up 
the  street. 

**  These  are  sailors,  Madame.'' 

'*  I  hope  you  are  satisfied  with  your  sight-seeing,*'  called 
back  the  Commander.  '  *  Let  us  get  out  of  this !  Ask  him 
if  we  have  to  go  back  down  these  slippery  steps  and  these 
filthy  streets,  and  inhale  again  all  the  detestable  odors?  '* 

Mohamed  answered  that  he  had  told  the  chauffeur  to  come 
by  the  Kasba,  so  they  would  meet  him  there  and  need  not 
descend. 

**  Your  guide  has  a  little  sense  after  all,  in  spite  of  bis 
clothes,'*  said  the  Commander. 

They  continued  to  go  up  and  passed  into  a  more  narrow 
and  lane-like  street,  where  the  houses  came  so  near  in  the 
second  story  that  the  dwellers  might  really  shake  hands 
across  the  street.  The  party  were  in  a  gloomy  half-twilight, 
and  there  all  was  silent,  except  that  sometimes  they  went  by 
a  house  whence,  where  a  high  window  opened  to  the  street, 
a  sound  of  nasal  chanting  and  beating  of  drums  broke  the 
silence. 

**  There,  Madame,  they  have  a  marriage  and  are  making 
music  and  beating  the  derbouka,  which  is  an  earthen  jar, 
Madame,  with  sheepskin  drawn  over  the  mouth.*' 

More  strange  figures  flitted  up  the  lane,  and  it  seemed  to 
our  couple  that  they  were  moving  in  a  kind  of  Inferno.  The 
narrow  street  soon  opened  into  a  wider  one,  and  as  the  houses 
were  farther  apart,  it  was  lighter.  Here  were  more  little  box- 
like shops.  Much  cooking  was  going  on  here.  Over  charcoal 
fires  all  sorts  of  queer-looking  scraps  and  bits  of  fish  were 
sizzling  in  hot  oil,  and  an  unappetizing  odor  filled  the  air. 
Here  were  the  sugar  merchants  with  great  cones  of  more  or 
less  white  sugar  suspended  from  strings.  Here  were  grocers 
with  all  sorts  of  uncanny  things  in  boxes  and  baskets,  and 
dried  lentils,  maize,  and  dried  chestnuts,  in  earthen  pans. 
Here  and  there  in  the  street,  a  barber  plied  his  vocation,  and 
in  full  view,  scraped  unfezzed  heads  until  they  looked  like 
mottled  cocoa-nuts.    Here  the  cafes  abounded  and  were  always 

[65] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

full  of  patrons.  The  guide  brought  them  to  two  streets  cor- 
nering on  the  Rue  Kleber  —  the  Rue  d^Affreville  and  the  Rue 
du  Galmier.  Here  at  the  corner  is  a  small  mosque,  which, 
Mohamed  informed  them,  '*  is  that  of  Mohammed-ed-Cherif, 
and  one  of  the  oldest  in  Algiers,  Madame/' 

*  *  It  is  here, ' '  said  the  Other-one,  consulting  her  guide-book, 
**  that  this  marabout,  or  saint,  *  was  buried  in  1541,  the  year 
Charles  V  made  his  expedition  against  Algiers,'  and  *  it  is 
this  saint  to  whom  women  come  to  pray  when  they  wish  to 
be  mothers.'  That  cafe  opposite,  on  the  corner,  is  *  where 
the  painter  Fromentin  used  to  come  very  frequently,  and  it 
was  then  much  more  picturesque  than  now. ' ' ' 

Mohamed  now  asked  if  they  would  go  to  see  the  other 
mosque  not  far  off,  where  were  most  beautiful  tiles  on  the 
minaret,  the  Djama  Sidi- Abdullah. 

**  Is  it  the  mosque  where  the  book  says  that  the  great 
Arab  teacher  Malek  used  to  pray  so  many  hundred  years 
ago  ? ' '  asked  the  Other-one. 

*  *  Madame,  I  cannot  tell  this,  but  I  know  everything  about 
the  rest." 

**  You  are  not  like  him,  Mohamed,  for  to  a  list  of  forty 
questions  asked  him,  one  day,  he  answered,  *  I  do  not  know  ' ; 
and  the  man  who  wrote  about  his  life  thought  that  only  a 
man  who  cared  more  for  the  glory  of  Allah  than  his  own, 
would  have  confessed  to  so  much  ignorance." 

* '  Madame,  it  is  true. ' ' 

In  reply  to  the  Other-one's  question  as  to  whether  they 
should  see  the  last  mosque,  the  Commander  declared  he  was 
tired  and  did  not  feel  like  more  sight-seeing  until  he  had  had 
his  luncheon! 

When  they  entered  the  pretty  Moorish-looking  dining- 
room,  with  its  colored  plaques  of  Arab  men  and  women,  life 
size,  in  their  characteristic  dress, —  one  of  a  native  woman, 
bearing  from  the  well  a  great  jar  on  her  head,  another  an 
Arab  with  white  hdik  and  flowing  burnous  on  a  white  Arabian 
horse, —  they  found  it  almost  deserted. 

' '  Do  you  know, ' '  said  the  Other-one,  as  they  began  upon  a 

[66] 


ALGIERS 

delicious  omelette  aux  point es  d*asperges,  served  by  a  deft 
waiter,  *  *  I  have  a  plan  too  ?  It  is  to  take  a  ride  this  after- 
noon out  into  the  country ;  then  rest  to-morrow,  which  is  Sun- 
day, and  go  to  church  if  we  wish,  to  the  pretty  Moorish-look- 
ing English  church,  with  its  chalk-white  domes,  not  far  from 
here;  then  write  our  letters  and  read  up  as  much  as  we  can 
for  our  trips  to  Cherchel  and  Bou  Saada.  Monday  we  can 
finish  up  our  sight-seeing  here  and  go  to  the  interesting 
Mosque  of  Sidi-Abd-er-Rahman,  also  the  Moorish  palaces.'* 

Which  was  accepted  with  a  little  demur  by  the  Commander. 

It  was  rather  late  that  afternoon  when  they  started  on  their 
ride  into  the  country-side;  for  the  Commander,  when  com- 
ing from  luncheon,  had  been  tangled  in  the  web  of  jewellery 
and  rugs  spread  by  the  three  wily  Arabs  on  the  tiled  terrace  of 
the  hotel.  They  had  discerned  him  as  one  who  would  have 
the  best  and  the  most  antique,  and  who  knew  counterfeit  from 
real.  So  they  spread  before  him  old  Kabyle  blankets,  with 
soft  colors  dulled  by  age,  in  faded  reds,  melting  browns, 
yellows  with  a  bloom  on  them,  blues  that  seemed  to  have 
taken  their  tints  from  the  sea  under  overhanging  rocks,  and 
greens  from  the  distant  mountain-sides  seen  through  a  haze. 
Some  were  in  intricate  designs,  some  with  stripes  of  creamy 
white.  Then  they  brought  out  the  precious  Kabyle  jewellery, 
not  shown  to  ordinary  tourists, —  necklaces,  rings,  anklets, 
bracelets,  great  plaques  all  in  silver  cunningly  fashioned, 
with  fine  tracings,  lovely  enamels  in  blues  and  greens  and  set 
with  turquoise  and  pieces  of  rough  coral, —  for  this  con- 
noisseur, nothing  in  glaring  colors  or  coarsely  wrought  jew- 
ellery. So  he  hovered  lovingly  over  them,  endeavoring  to 
conceal  his  joy,  that  he  might  drive  sharp  bargains  —  which 
he  loved  almost  as  much  as  the  antique  curios  themselves  — 
with  the  crafty  Arab  merchants. 

The  Other-one  modestly  contented  herself  with  some  of 
the  tourist-beloved  *  *  modern  trash  '  * —  hat  pins  with  filigree 
balls,  nickel  boxes  with  Moorish  designs,  a  necklace  of  small 
plaques  with  enamel  in  colors,  and  a  few  other  trifles.  When 
they  at  last  went  up  to  their  room,  the  Commander  bore  a 

[67] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

large  package,  and  the  hall  porter  followed  him  bearing  three 
or  four  rugs.  As  the  Commander  pulled  out  his  purchases 
and  regarded  them  with  great  satisfaction,  the  Other-one 
gasped, —  while  Marguerite  hastened  to  arrange  them  on 
tables  and  on  the  walls. 

* '  Are  you  going  to  set  up  shop  here,  and  what  are  we  to 
do  with  all  these?'' 

**  They  are  for  the  Museum,"  replied  the  Commander. 
**  I  am  going  to  have  a  great  collection  of  Kabyle  work  for  it, 
of  the  best,  and  to-day  I  found  wonderful  things,  and  bar- 
gains too,  I  can  tell  you." 

On  Sunday,  our  couple  passed  the  day  as  had  been  planned ; 
and  Monday,  bright  and  early,  saw  them  in  their  car,  slid- 
ing down  the  Mustapha  hill,  under  the  guidance  of  Moham- 
ed,  whose  teeth  had  never  seemed  so  white,  nor  whose  smile  so 
gay.  Alas!  this  smile  was  doomed  soon  to  be  quenched  in 
sadness.  He  was  to  lose  his  profitable  patron  and  the  delight- 
ful motor-rides;  for  that  morning  before  starting,  the  Com- 
mander had  said  to  the  Other-one: 

*'  You  must  tell  Mohamed,  to-night,  that  we  will  need 
him  no  more." 

**  What !  "  cried  the  Lady.  '*  My  handsome  bronze  Moham- 
ed, with  his  bright  smile  and  picturesque  clothes!  " 

**  Yes!  "  answered  the  Commander  tersely.  **  The  fact  is, 
I  must  have  an  intelligent  man  who  speaks  English.  There 
are  a  thousand  things  I  am  continually  wanting  to  ask  a 
guide,  and  Mohamed  is  only  an  animated  parrot.  He  knows 
nothing  really." 

It  was  decided  that  they  should  go  first  to  the  Mosque  and 
Koubba  of  Sidi-Abd-er-Rahman,  as  it  was  open  to  strangers 
only  two  hours  in  the  morning.  They  went  up  the  Rue  Ran- 
don,  then  up  the  hilly  Rue  Marengo  and  had  glimpses  of  the 
sea  over  the  roofs.  The  car  was  stopped  at  one  side  of  the 
great  white-domed  Medressa  or  college.  Beggars  were 
crouched  down  on  the  sidewalk  in  front  of  the  great  entrance 
to  the  school  and  along  the  white  wall.  Mohamed  took  them 
to  a  gateway  farther  on  in  the  wall,  at  one  side.    From  this 

[  68  ] 


ALGIERS 

gateway  a  narrow  path  descends  by  rude  stone  steps  to  the 
blue  sea  below.  Half-way  down  is  a  white-domed  tomb.  Some 
women  were  going  down  and  others  coming  up,  all  swathed 
in  their  white  garments ;  they  looked  as  if  they  had  but  just 
left  their  tombs  for  a  walk  and  a  look  at  the  living  world. 
The  guide  conducted  his  party  down  and  through  an  arched 
gateway,  into  a  little  burying-ground,  with  tombs  scattered 
here  and  there,  with  round  or  turban-shaped  head  pieces. 
Some  of  the  platforms  are  all  of  green  tile,  others  of  blue  and 
white.  At  one  side  of  the  entrance  is  a  tomb  with  a  project- 
ing tiled  roof  and  small  barred  windows,  with  a  pattern  in 
colors  around  them.  A  great  cypress-tree,  back  of  it,  casts 
melancholy  shadows  across  the  little  building.  Back  of  it 
one  can  see  the  minaret,  an  elegant  square  construction  of 
three  or  four  tiers  of  slender  colonnades  running  around  it, 
and  bands  of  brilliant  old  faience  in  rich  coloring  between. 
All,  with  the  old  cypress,  makes  a  most  effective  picture.  Some 
white-robed  women  were  moving  softly  around  the  tombs, 
dropping  a  branch  of  evergreen  here  and  there  on  them.  The 
stillness,  the  beauty  of  the  view  looking  down  over  the  low 
walls  to  the  sea,  the  graceful  minaret,  with  the  dark  green  of 
the  cypress,  all  against  the  azure  sky,  and  the  white,  softly- 
moving  women,  made  it  seem  a  charmed  and  peaceful  place, 
after  the  clamor  and  bustle  of  the  dirty  and  importunate  beg- 
gars they  had  left  outside.  At  the  far  end  of  the  grounds, 
near  an  ancient  cypress-tree,  a  door  opened  into  the  Koubba, 
or  tomb  of  Sidi-Abd-er-Rahman,  who  died  in  1471,  and  was 
as  celebrated  for  the  holiness  of  his  life  as  for  his  scientific 
knowledge.  He  left  several  theological  treatises  also.  He  is 
in  great  repute  among  the  people  of  Algiers,  especially  as 
he  is  in  a  way  their  patron. 

At  the  entrance  Mohamed  delivered  his  people  over  to 
an  ancient  crone,  who  brought  them  frayed  and  shabby  slip- 
pers to  put  on  over  their  profane  shoes  before  entering  the 
sacred  place.  It  was  a  small  room  they  came  into,  with  a  few 
small  windows,  and,  coming  out  of  the  brilliant  sunshine, 
they  could  at  first  discern  but  little.     When  they  became 

[69] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

accustomed  to  the  half  light,  they  saw  in  one  corner  the 
tomb,  looking  like  a  wide,  huge  bed,  surrounded  by  a  high, 
elaborately  carved  and  painted  railing  with  panels  of  Meshri- 
biyeh  work.  Over  the  tomb  were  thrown  rich  shawls  and 
draperies  of  silk,  banners  in  tatters,  and  great  strings  of 
prayer  beads.  A  great  crystal  chandelier  hung  above  it,  and 
there  were  other  smaller  ones  hung  around  the  room,  and 
ostrich  eggs,  curious  Arabian  lamps,  and  many  other  things, 
probably  all  votive  offerings.  Standing  in  the  corner  w^as  an 
old  clock,  which  all  mosques  have,  and  which  are  never  known 
to  keep  time,  seldom  even  to  go.  There  are  beautiful  old 
glazed  tiles  on  the  walls,  and  the  rugs  on  the  floor  are  more  or 
less  fine. 

Three  or  four  women  were  kneeling  around  the  wooden 
enclosure ;  some  kissed  passionately  the  wooden  panels,  others 
reached  through  the  open-work  and  tried  to  touch  the  dra- 
peries or  shawls,  which  must,  they  believed,  once  have  been 
worn  by  the  saint.  One  old  woman  replenished  the  oil  in  the 
little  lamps  kept  burning  near  the  tomb.  The  ancient  crone 
kept  an  eye  on  our  party  for  a  few  moments,  but  seeing  that 
they  were  perfectly  quiet  and  respectful,  went  and  knelt  by 
the  railing;  but  soon  she  came  to  them  and  made  signs  that 
they  should  go  out,  which  they  were  only  too  glad  to  do,  for 
the  place  was  stuffy,  and  the  air  heavy  with  unaccustomed 
odors  and  strange  scents.  Out  in  the  peaceful  burying-place 
they  found  a  venerable  man  in  a  huge  turban,  and  well 
wrapped  in  his  white  wool  burnous.  He  was  regarding, 
benevolently,  the  pranks  of  two  dirty  little  boys  in  long  gowns 
and  soiled  white  skull  caps,  who  were  playing  some  sort  of 
game  with  small  stones  on  the  ground ;  then  they  turned  and, 
without  the  smallest  attention  to  the  strangers,  began  to  play 
leap-frog,  tumbling  over  one  another,  shouting  and  screaming 
and  disturbing  the  calm  of  the  place. 

**  A  strange  place  to  have  games  in!  ''  exclaimed  the  Com- 
mander, '*  but  boys  are  boys  the  world  over." 

Our  party  climbed  the  steps  to  the  entrance  gate,  running 
the  gantlet  of  several  unkempt  Arabs  who  clamored  for  sous, 

[70] 


ALGIERS 

and  regained  their  car.  They  ran  along  the  Rampe  Valee, 
and  stopped  for  a  glimpse  of  the  Marengo  garden. 

Then  they  went  down  again,  by  the  Rue  Randon  and  the 
Rue  de  la  Lyre,  pausing  at  the  corner  of  the  Rue  Divan  to  go 
into  the  cathedral  for  a  few  moments,  for  a  glimpse  of  its 
columns  from  an  old  mosque,  and  the  inscription  in  gilded 
letters  on  black  marble,  from  the  Koran,  over  the  high  altar. 

* '  How  strange !  * '  exclaimed  the  Other-one.  ' '  Sentences 
from  the  Koran  here !  And  do  you  notice  that  the  altar  faces 
toward  the  west!  " 

Entering  the  chapel  at  the  right,  they  saw  the  white  marble 
tomb  of  Geronimo,  the  Arab  Christian  martyr. 

It  was  but  a  step  or  two  over  to  the  Governor's  winter  pal- 
ace, a  Moorish  house  of  the  eighteenth  century.  It  has 
beautiful  arched  Moorish  windows.  There  are  two  graceful 
date-palm-trees  in  front,  and  banana-trees,  with  their  great, 
ragged,  translucent  leaves.  Enclosed  in  a  railing,  there  are 
two  little  sentry  boxes  near  the  door.  An  amiable-looking 
concierge  seemed  glad  to  see  them,  the  prospect  of  a  fee 
making  him  alert  and  anxious  to  please.  He  took  them  at 
once  into  the  courts  which  are  glassed  over  and  have  twisted 
marble  columns  upholding  the  Moorish  arches  of  the  galleries. 
There  are  lovely  tiles  on  the  walls  here,  and  some  fine  stucco- 
work.  The  guardian  seemed  to  consider  the  great  crystal 
chandelier  in  the  big  ball  room  the  chief  beauty  of  the  place. 

The  Archbishop's  palace  is  directly  opposite  the  Governor's, 
so  our  couple  had  but  to  follow  Mohamed  across  the  street 
and  he  delivered  them  into  the  hands  of  a  motherly  old  French 
woman  at  the  entrance.  She  took  them  up  a  flight  of  stairs 
to  show  them  what  she  might,  **  as  Monseigneur  was  at  pres- 
ent in  the  palace  and  they  could  see  only  certain  rooms." 
The  respectable  old  dame  moved  deliberately  and  dignifiedly 
through  the  apartments,  here  and  there  throwing  out  a  bit 
of  information,  but  with  apparent  reluctance  as  if  she  might 
compromise  His  Reverence,  the  Archbishop.  This  palace  also 
is  on  the  plan  of  most  of  the  old  Moorish  houses,  with  a  court 
opening  from  the  vestibule,  with  the  slender,  graceful  mar- 

[71] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

ble  columns  supporting  the  gallery  above;  also  having  col- 
umns and  horseshoe  arches,  all  running  around  the  court. 
There  are  the  lovely,  iridescent  tiles  around  the  walls,  and 
stucco  in  lace-like  patterns,  recalling  the  Alhambra,  but 
coarser  in  work  and  design.  In  the  entrance  court  were  a 
great  palm  in  a  jar,  and  some  religious  pictures  under  the 
colonnade,  and  busts  of  cardinals  and  archbishops,  all  look- 
ing much  out  of  place  here. 

In  spite  of  all  the  delicacy  of  the  arabesque  work,  the 
light  and  airy  colonnades,  the  open  courts  in  marble  flagging, 
all  the  place  had  a  bare,  though  pure,  look,  after  the  over- 
loaded furnishings  of  the  modern  European  houses. 

The  Other-one  tried  to  imagine  what  this  might  have  been 
in  the  times  when  the  Deys  had  sway.  This  lovely  setting  of 
white  columns  and  marble-flagged  courts  in  which  must  have 
been  heard  the  plashing  of  fountains'  silver  rain  into  the 
basins,  all  open  to  the  blue  sky  above;  harem  beauties  trip- 
ping over  priceless  rugs  with  their  tiny  slippered  feet,  and 
gleaming  with  jewels ;  clothed  in  spangled  gauze  dresses  and 
filmy  scarfs  bound  above  their  melting  dark  eyes. 

*  *  Madame  finds  the  palace  beautiful  ?  '  * 

The  Other-one  roused  herself  from  her  dream  of  fair 
women,  half  expecting  to  see  one  of  the  beauties  in  diaphanous 
robes,  from  the  soft  dulcet  tones  that  fell  on  her  ear.  But 
there  was  only  a  short,  fat,  precise  old  woman,  in  severe  cap 
and  plain  gown  of  gray,  who  seemed  anxious  for  her  tourists 
to  depart,  fearing  "  Monseigneur  might  come  down  at  any 
moment. ' ' 

When  they  reached  their  hotel,  the  Other-one  turned,  with 
regret,  to  give  her  picturesque  guide  his  dismissal.  His  bril- 
liant smile  faded  away  when  she  told  him  they  would  need 
him  no  more,  at  the  same  time  placing  a  fat  fee  in  his  ever- 
ready  palm. 

*'  We  go  off,  to-morrow,  for  a  trip  into  the  country." 

'  *  But  Madame  must  take  me, ' '  he  said  eagerly.  * '  I  know 
everything,  all  the  roads,  all  the  towns,  I  speak  the  language 
of  all  the  tribes  —  Madame  will  see.     There  is  no  guide  like 

[72] 


ALGIERS 

me.    Madame  will  be  indeed  desolate  without  me.    Everybody 
who  travels  here  desires  to  have  me.*' 

**  In  that  ease  you  will  have  no  trouble  to  secure  a  patron 
at  once.  I  am  sorry,"  she  said  firmly,  *'  but  we  cannot  take 
you."  So  she  turned  away  leaving  Mohamed  disconsolate 
indeed. 


[73] 


CHAPTER  V 

THE  TRIP  TO  CHERCHEL  AND  TOMBEAU  DE  LA   CHRETIENNE 

WHEN  the  Other-one  descended  the  next  morning  at  an 
early  hour,  all  ready  to  begin  the  trip  to  Cherchel, 
she  found  the  car  in  shining  readiness.  Adrian  was  hovering 
around  it,  giving  some  last  touches,  while  a  sallow  little  man 
in  spectacles  was  putting  in  the  valises  and  filling  up  the 
big  bag,  back  of  the  front  seat,  with  the  shawls  and  travel- 
ling coats.  Jammed  down  over  his  head  was  a  much  worn, 
soft,  black  felt  hat,  from  under  which  he  peeped  at  her 
humbly. 

**  Who  is  that  man?  ''  she  asked  sotto  voce  of  the  Comman- 
der, who  was  giving  rapid  directions  as  to  the  disposal  of 
the  baggage. 

**  It  *s  the  guide,'*  said  he,  shortly. 

**What!  That  insignificant,  ordinary  little  creature,  in 
those  European  clothes!  He  looks  as  if  he  had  been  buried 
some  centuries  and  has  not  had  time  to  brush  off  the  mould 
since  excavated.    Is  he  to  replace  my  picturesque  Mohamed  ?  * ' 

**  I  know  he  is  not  much  to  look  at,'*  answered  the  Com- 
mander, stiffly,  * '  but  he  is  an  excellent  guide,  and  knows  all 
the  roads,  the  hotel  manager  says.  He  will  tell  you  about 
everything  we  see.  Moreover,  he  speaks  good  English,  which 
is  the  essential.  He  is  a  Jew,  and  his  name  is  Moses.''  So 
saying  the  Commander  turned  quickly  away,  donned  his 
warm  coat  —  for  the  morning  was  cool  —  with  the  guide's 
aid,  mounted  to  his  throne,  unfolding  his  map  for  a  last 
glance  at  the  road,  and  placed  his  dog  whip  where  he  could 
reach  it. 

The  Other-one  was  soon  in  her  seat,  and  the  guide  got  into 
his,  very  humbly,  in  front  of  her;  then  they  rolled  away 
down  the  avenue,  leaving  the  hotel  in  its  pretty  garden,  and 

[74] 


THE   TRIP  TO   CHERCHEL 

a  few  early  people,  who  watched  them  off  rather  enviously. 
The  Arabs  would  have  been  *  *  desolated  *  *  to  see  their  munifi- 
cent patron  escaping  from  their  toils;  but  they  had  not  yet 
come  to  spin  their  seductive  webs.  It  was  a  fine,  fresh  morn- 
ing, and  the  sun  was  a  little  shorn  of  its  beams  by  some  light 
clouds  floating  in  the  sky.  The  sea  was  of  a  blue  tourmaline 
tint  with  reflections  of  burnished  silver,  where  the  sun  caught 
the  edge  of  the  waves.  A  fog  shut  out  the  snow  peaks  from 
view.  The  air  was  invigorating,  and  seemed  as  though  it 
had  come  from  the  sea  with  its  flavor,  over  snow-capped 
mountains  that  cooled  it ;  then  across  deserts  to  warm  it,  and 
then  over  verdant,  flowery  plains  to  catch  the  aroma  of  the 
flowers.  Down  the  car  went,  smoothly,  over  the  perfect  roads, 
by  orange  groves  with  white  villas  peeping  through,  by  the 
domed  English  church,  to  the  Boulevard  above  the  harbor, 
with  its  early  loungers  there ;  by  the  Public  Garden,  with  its 
great  clusters  of  palm-trees;  by  the  Place  du  Gouvernement, 
not  quite  so  effervescing  in  that  early  hour,  still  with  much 
movement,  light,  and  color.  The  Mosque  of  the  Fishery  looked 
as  if  it  had  been  re- white  washed  in  the  night  past,  and  early 
Arabs  lounged  by  its  walls.  So  our  Motorists  slipped  away 
from  the  fascinating  life,  past  the  Peiion  with  its  gruesome 
memories,  less  pitiful  in  the  morning  sunlight,  the  waves 
breaking  in  a  fringe  of  foam  against  its  rocks.  Just  beyond 
the  guide  pointed  out  the  Arabian  house  with  its  lovely 
Moorish  entrance  and  its  graceful  palm  swaying  in  the  light 
breeze  —  then  they  went  past  the  Fort  des  Anglais. 

**  Oh!  *'  exclaimed  the  Commander,  **  is  this  not  glorious!  '* 
and  he  drew  deep  breaths  of  the  fresh,  sweet  air. 

They  soon  came  to,  and  passed,  St.  Eugene,  with  its  white 
villas  surrounded  by  gardens,  and  its  common,  ugly,  French 
main  street.  Beyond  is  the  Valley  of  the  Consuls,  which  the 
guide  said  **  was  so  named  for  having  been  the  quarter  where 
the  foreign  consuls  lived  in  the  time  of  the  Deys.*'  Below 
were  the  Jewish  and  European  cemeteries,  and  back  on  green 
Bouzarea  the  towering  Byzantine  dome  of  Notre  Dame 
d'Afrique  could  be  seen.    They  bowled  on  by  the  sea,  which 

175] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

was  flinging  its  white  foam  on  the  rocks  below.  About  three 
kilometres  on  they  passed  the  old  Turkish  fort,  built  on  a  great 
rock  jutting  into  the  sea,  and  the  white  lighthouse  of  Cape 
Caxine.  The  road  now  was  bordered  with  white  villas  and 
gardens  on  one  side;  on  the  other,  great  rocks  projected  into 
the  sea.  Then  came  a  long  stretch  of  vineyards,  no  green 
vine  leaves  showing  as  yet,  but  the  land  was  beautifully 
clean  and  rich-looking  and  free  from  weeds.  Fifteen  kilo- 
metres more  and  they  reached  Guyotville,  a  pretty  town  with 
a  sandy  beach  stretching  from  it  to  the  sea. 

Here,  the  guide  said,  were  many  market  gardens,  the  sandy 
soil  lending  itself  well  to  this  kind  of  culture. 

On  they  sped,  the  road  always  smooth,  the  gardens  a 
delight  to  the  eye.  To  the  Other-one's  regret,  they  began  to 
drop  away  from  the  sea  and  run  on  with  great,  rolling,  green 
mountains  at  their  left.  There  were  small  domains  along  the 
way,  where  many  fig-trees  were  growing,  their  knotted, 
sprawling  branches  showing  faint  green  leaves.  They  ran  now 
by  wide  cultivated  fields,  spreading  miles  on  all  sides,  enor- 
mous vineyards,  in  the  most  careful  state  of  cultivation. 

"  These  are  the  domains  of  La  Trappe,'*  said  Moses; 
*'  about  two  kilometres  from  Staoueli  (the  little  village  we 
pass  through  next,  and  where  in  1830  the  Moslem  army  was 
encamped,  and  a  battle  was  fought  which  completely  routed 
the  Turks)  was  the  monastery  of  La  Trappe.  The  French 
Government  gave  the  Trappists  twenty-five  hundred  acres 
of  land,  and  they  came  here  in  1843,  under  the  care  of 
their  Superior,  Father  Francis  Regis.  The  first  stone  of  the 
abbey  was  laid  on  a  bed  of  shells  and  balls  found  on  the 
battlefield. 

''It  is  a  large,  rectangular  building,  fifty  yards  square, 
with  a  garden  in  the  centre.  There  are  inscriptions  on  the 
walls.  One  says,  '  If  it  is  hard  to  live  at  La  Trappe,  how 
sweet  it  is  to  die  there !  '  On  the  grounds  there  are  large 
farms,  granaries,  wine  cellars,  and  cattle  stalls.  There  are 
extensive  orchards  and  vineyards.  But  the  monks  are  no 
longer  there.     They  were  expelled  by  the   Government  in 

[76] 


THE   TRIP  TO   CHERCHEL 

1904.  The  wine  is  now  made  by  the  Spaniards,  who  have 
occupied  the  monastery  ever  since  the  monks  left/* 

The  car  was  now  passing  large  fields  of  a  lovely  pale  green 
of  early  wheat  or  barley,  the  long  blades  waving  in  graceful 
lines  in  the  morning  breeze. 

* '  How  wonderful  this  cultivation  is !  "  remarked  the  Com- 
mander ;  *  *  these  great  grain  fields,  these  enormous  vineyards, 
all  wrested  from  the  wild  lands  by  the  tremendous  toil  of  the 
colonists.  What  faith  they  must  have  in  their  methods ;  what 
a  capacity  for  labor!  These  roads,  these  great  cultivated 
domains,  make  me  think  much  better  of  the  French !  ' ' 

The  car  now  went  through  the  little  village  of  Staoueli. 
Sidi  Ferruch  is  about  two  kilometres  off,  down  by  the  sea. 
Moses  now  began  in  his  sing-song  voice,  pointing  down  to  the 
plains  near  the  sea  about  four  kilometres  away : 

"  That  is  Sidi  Ferruch  where  the  French  disembarked  in 
1830,  and  after  a  brilliant  engagement,  entered  Algiers.** 

Now  came  a  long,  uncultivated  plain,  but  brilliant  with 
wild  flowers,  making  a  mosaic  of  lovely  color.  Farther  on, 
they  saw  clumps  of  the  dwarf  palm,  the  Chamcerops  humilis. 
Some  natives  were  tearing  off  the  leaves,  stuffing  them  into 
great  panniers  borne  by  patient  donkeys,  standing  near ;  and 
the  car  passed  many  other  donkeys,  with  high  heaped  palm 
leaves.  The  Commander's  curiosity  was  excited  as  to  what 
use  was  made  of  these  palm  leaves. 

**  A  vegetable  horsehair  is  made  of  them,  which  is  exported 
in  large  quantities,  and  is  used  to  stuff  cushions  and  cheap 
mattresses,**  said  the  all-knowing  Moses. 

A  vehicle  now  hove  in  sight,  the  like  of  which  they  had 
never  seen.    The  Other-one,  ever  on  the  alert,  peered  out. 

**  I  must  have  a  photograph  of  that.** 

Adrian  pulled  up  the  car;  the  strange  object  came  near 
in  a  cloud  of  dust  and  slowed  almost  to  a  standstill  as  it 
approached  the  motor,  with  which  the  driver  was  as  much 
impressed,  evidently,  as  our  party  with  his  stage.  There 
were  three  horses  abreast  and  two  behind  them  attached  to 
this    nondescript    coach,    a    double-decker.      A    long    hood 

[77] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

extended  over  the  **  upper  deck  '*  and  seemed  to  be  packed 
solidly  with  baggage  and  Arabs,  who  peered  anxiously  out 
from  the  flaps.  A  chaise-like  cover  was  over  the  seat  of  the 
driver  who  was  a  bronzed,  hard-looking  Frenchman,  with  a 
turban  wound  around  his  head. 

The  part  under  the  * '  deck  ' '  seemed  to  be  the  place  for 
first-class  passengers,  as  those  who  looked  out  had  a  cleaner 
and  more  well-to-do  air  than  their  fellow-travellers  above ;  but 
it  seemed  stuffy,  and  the  whole  vehicle  creaked  and  rocked 
as  the  driver  cracked  his  whip  sharply  and  moved  on  with 
his  cloud  of  dust.  The  car  ran  on;  sometimes  there  were 
glimpses  of  the  sea,  then  there  came  into  view  the  most  sym- 
metrically beautiful  mountain  the  Other-one  thought  she  had 
ever  seen.    It  was  a  soft  pearly  blue. 

''What  is  it?''  she  asked.  "It  is  so  lovely!  It  seems 
made  of  the  mist  of  the  sea !  ' ' 

' '  My  lady,  that  is  called  Chenoua !  ' ' 

They  swept  in,  always  now  by  the  sea,  to  Zeralda,  going 
throug:h  the  main  street  with  its  shops  and  two  or  three  cafes 
Maures,  where  Arabs  squatted  on  the  ground  or  lolled  on 
benches,  drinking  the  ever-present  coffee  and  smoking 
cigarettes. 

''What  lazy  creatures  Arabs  are,"  exclaimed  the  Other- 
one.  "  We  see  them  always,  crouched  down  by  the  roadside 
or  lounging  at  the  cafes.  I  have  not  as  yet  seen  an  Arab  at 
work.  Nor  have  I  yet  seen  a  woman  at  a  cafe.  The  poor  wives 
always  stay  at  home,  or  go  to  cemeteries,  all  bundled  up  in 
hdiks  and  veils, —  to  get  their  pleasure,  it  seems." 

The  car  rolled  on.  Down  by  the  sea  were  the  sand  dunes 
and  a  forest  of  green  feathery  pines.  They  passed  a  road  to 
the  left,  white  and  smooth,  and  saw,  far  to  the  left,  a  wide 
cut  in  the  Atlas  Mountains. 

*' That  road,"  said  the  guide,  "leads  to  Blida  and  the 
Gorge  of  the  Chiffa,  so  celebrated  for  its  fine  scenery  and  the 
monkeys." 

"  We  will  certainly  return  that  way,"  declared  the  Com- 
mander, "  and  cultivate  an  acquaintance  with  those  monkeys." 

[78] 


THE   TRIP  TO   CHERCHEL 

Still  on,  and  the  symmetrical  mountain  always  grew  less 
ethereal  as  they  neared  it.  The  way  led  now  up  a  hill,  and 
the  sea  became  broadly  visible.  They  crossed,  on  an  iron 
bridge,  one  of  those  curious  African  rivers  —  all  rocks,  peb- 
bles, and  sand,  but  not  the  tiniest  trickle  of  water  —  the 
Oued  Mazafran.  The  guide  began  to  show  signs  of  nervous- 
ness when  they  had  gone  some  distance  on  a  road  he  had 
motioned  Adrian  to  take. 

**  I  am  afraid,**  he  said  humbly,  at  length,  '*  we  are  on 
the  wrong  road.  We  must  turn  back!**  Which  they  did, 
taking  a  narrow  road  to  the  left. 

After  some  more  turns  and  returns  by  the  bewildered 
guide,  during  which  the  Commander's  patience  was  nearly 
exhausted,  they  came  down  into  Castiglione,  a  pretty  little 
town,  almost  wholly  French  in  its  characteristics.  Here  are 
an  abundance  of  good  water  and  fine  agricultural  lands.  A 
beautiful  avenue  of  mulberry-trees  leads  to  the  water,  though 
now  they  were  not  in  full  leaf.  All  the  sand  dunes  down  by 
the  sea  were  covered  with  the  lentisque  bushes,  with  their 
soft,  dark,  shiny  green  leaves,  and  their  prickly  thorns.  What 
gave  the  Other-one  a  vivid  pleasure  was  to  get  a  glorious  view 
of  the  mountain  Chenoua,  which  she  had  elected  to  call  her 
own.  Now  it  had  lost  its  far-off  ethereal  look,  and  from  here 
seemed  an  almost  friendly  mountain. 

They  had  luncheon  in  a  tiny  room  of  the  primitive  and  not 
over-clean  hotel,  which  looked  into  a  dusty  little  garden.  A 
slatternly  girl,  directed  by  Monsieur  the  proprietor,  brought 
them,  after  some  waiting,  a  greasy  omelette  and  some  tough 
chops  garnished  with  fried  potatoes,  and  finished  them  off 
with  withered  oranges  and  dusty  figs  and  dates.  But  the 
bottle  of  native  red  wine  was  excellent  and,  like  all  the  wines 
of  Algeria,  pure  and  of  good  flavor. 

After  some  dispute  between  the  guide  and  Monsieur  the 
proprietor  as  to  the  correct  road  to  the  Tomb  of  the  Christian, 
—  which  it  was  thought  best  to  visit  now  and  not  wait  to  do 
so  on  the  return  trip, —  the  party  were  off.  Everywhere  they 
passed  great  vineyards  that  lay  above*  the  blue  sea. 

[79] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

**  I  must  believe,"  exclaimed  the  Other-one,  '*  that  the  wine 
is  always  good  when  the  vineyards  open  to  glorious  views. 
The  grapes  must  ripen  more  richly,  exposed  to  their  benign 
influence ! ' ' 

*'  This  is  the  Sahel,  the  region  of  hills  that  lie  between  the 
sea  on  the  north  and  the  plain  of  the  Mitidja  on  the  south. 
It  is  all  very  fertile  land,'^  said  the  guide. 

The  soil  was  a  warm  brown  in  color,  under  the  vines.  It 
would  have  taken  a  rich  palette  to  give  all  the  effects  of  color 

—  warm  browns,  peacock  blues,  soft  greens,  and  the  blue-gray 
of  the  distance. 

Near  the  farmhouse,  called  Beau  Sejour,  after  some  words 
with  a  man  in  a  blouse  who  was  smoking  his  pipe,  under  a 
lace-like  pepper-tree,  the  guide  directed  Adrian  to  turn  up 
a  country  road  to  the  left.  It  was  a  very  bad  one,  soft  and 
full  of  humps.  The  Commander,  who  had  lost  some  of  his 
confidence  in  Moses*  knowledge  of  roads,  objected  strongly. 

' '  I  don 't  believe  we  are  on  the  right  road, ' '  he  said 
sharply.  *'  No  carriage,  much  less  automobile,  can  go  up 
such  a  road  as  this !    There  must  be  some  other. '  * 

*  *  I  know  of  no  other, ' '  said  the  guide  humbly. 

Adrian  put  the  car  into  second  speed  and  they  bumped 
over  rocks  and  hillocks  to  the  noise  of  its  grinding.  At  length 
they  succeeded  in  reaching  the  barren  hill  clothed  in  wild 
grass  and  lentisque  bushes,  where  the  great  mysterious  ruin 

—  to  account  for  which  there  have  been  so  many  theories  — 
stood,  most  impressive  in  its  lonely  grandeur,  a  landmark  for 
the  surrounding  country  for  ages.  It  was  much  more 
enormous  than  the  Commander  and  the  Lady  had  thought, 
viewing  it  from  afar.  And  this  is  what  they  saw: 
a  great  heap  of  blocks  of  stone  rising  in  a  cone- 
like shape  two  hundred  and  fifty  feet,  in  form  like  a 
huge  drum  nearly  one  hundred  and  fifty  feet  in  diameter.  It 
has  sixty  pilasters,  or  attached  columns,  of  the  Ionic  order, 
all  around  at  intervals.  At  the  north,  east,  and  west,  are 
four  false  doors,  the  moulding  on  which  is  like  a  cross.  This 
is  probably  why  the  Arabs  call  it  the  Tomb  of  the  Christian 

[80] 


THE   TRIP  TO  CHERCHEL 

—  in  Arabic,  Kbour  Roumia.  If  not  as  beautiful  as  it  must 
have  been  in  its  pristine  glory,  it  is  still  very  picturesque, 
with  the  wild  grasses  and  bushes  growing  around  the  rocks 
that  lie  in  disorder  at  its  base,  and  the  graceful  vines  that 
thrust  themselves  —  covered  with  pale-blue,  white,  and  yel- 
low blossoms  —  out  from  the  interstices  of  the  stones  above. 
The  hill  upon  which  this  tomb  stands,  is  six  or  eight  hundred 
feet  high,  and  the  azure  sea  shows  afar  on  one  side ;  on  the 
other,  the  great  verdant  plain  of  the  Mitidja,  that  plain 
whose  soil  is  so  rich  that  of  all  Algeria  it  is  most  colonized; 
and  there  are  wonderful  farms  which  show  the  transforma- 
tion the  French  have  made  in  this  country. 

**  This  ruin  is  wonderful,  stupendous!  I  am  glad  we  came 
in  spite  of  the  bad  road  leading  up  to  it!  '*  said  the  Comman- 
der, as  he  gazed  at  the  great  mound  of  stones  rising  to  such 
proportions  above  him. 

'*  I  had  not  thought  much  about  seeing  this;  what  we  should 
have  missed  had  we  not  come!  I  know  nothing  about  it; 
what  can  you  tell  us,  Moses,  concerning  it  T  " 

"  It  is  the  Tomheau  de  la  Chreiicnne,  sir,  that  is  all.  No 
one  knows  much  about  it.  If  you  wish  to  go  inside,  I  will  get 
the  guardian,  who  lives  in  that  little  cabin  up  there."  From 
which  hut  two  figures  detached  themselves  and  came  —  one 
slowly  and  feebly,  the  other  on  the  dead  run  —  toward  them. 

*  *  Come  over  here,  away  from  those  persons ;  let  us  sit  down 
on  a  rock  hidden  by  those  bushes,  and  while  you  look  at  the 
great  ruin,  I  will  tell  you,  as  well  as  I  can,  what  I  read  about 
this  tomb,  last  evening,  in  a  book  on  the  Ancient  Cities  of 
North  Africa,  by  Rene  Cagnat,  and  also  in  another  French 
work.'' 

They  went  off  a  little  distance  and  sat  down  on  a  broken 
column,  and  feasted  their  eyes  alternately  on  the  grand  view 
and  the  great  picturesque  mound  of  stones. 

**  How  strange  it  seems,**  meditated  the  Commander,  *'  to 
see  how  much  in  ruins  this  tomb  is,  covered  with  wild  vines 
and  bushes  growing  up  to  conceal  the  base ;  and  to  have  this 
quiet  and  loneliness  here,  when  once  it  was  a  place  of  such 

[81] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

tremendous  activity,  when  it  was  being  built;  and  do  you 
know,  I  have  a  theory  about  the  building  of  it  ?  '  * 

**  Well,"  began  the  Other-one,  **  you  must  know  there  have 
been  many  suppositions  to  account  for  this  great  mass.  It 
was  once  believed  to  be  the  tomb  of  that  great  beauty  whom 
the  King  of  the  Visigoths  seduced,  the  daughter  of  Count 
Julian,  who  in  order  to  avenge  himself  for  this,  gave  up  Spain 
to  the  Mussulmans.  Others  said  it  was  built  to  guard  a  great 
treasure.  Some  of  the  legends  about  the  treasure  are  inter- 
esting. One  is,  that  a  peasant  who  guarded  his  cattle  near 
this  tomb,  having  noticed  that  one  of  his  cows  disappeared 
every  evening,  but  was  found  every  morning  in  the  midst  of 
the  herd,  resolved  to  watch  her.  He  saw  her  enter  a  hole  in 
this  tomb,  which  closed  up  at  once  after  her.  The  next  even- 
ing, better  advised,  he  caught  the  tail  of  the  cow  as  she  was 
about  to  enter,  and  he  was  dragged  in  with  her.  He  came  out 
the  next  morning  by  the  same  means,  but  carrying  such  treas- 
ure of  gold,  that  he  became  one  of  the  richest  lords  of  the 
country.  It  is  unnecessary  to  add  that  he  often  made  an  ex- 
cursion here.  Another  legend  has  it  that  an  Arab  of  the 
Mitidja,  that  vast  plain  down  there,  fell  into  the  hands  of  the 
Christians,  and  became  the  slave  of  an  old  Spanish  savant, 
well  up  in  knowledge  of  sorcery.  This  old  savant  gave  the 
Arab  his  liberty  on  condition  that  he  would  return  to  his 
country,  visit  this  tomb,  turn  toward  the  east,  and  burn  a 
magic  paper  which  the  sorcerer  gave  him.  The  Arab  did  as 
asked,  and  saw  a  strange  sight:  no  sooner  had  the  paper 
burned  up  than  this  tomb  opened,  and  a  great  crowd  of  gold 
pieces  came  out  of  the  opening,  and  flew  off  in  the  direction 
of  Spain,  where  it  is  certain  they  went  to  join  the  sorcerer. 

**  These  are  nonsensical  tales, '*  said  the  Commander. 
**  Tell  me  what  you  have  read  that  gives  the  real  facts  about 
this  tomb — not  legends,  please." 

**  For  my  part  I  like  to  read  the  old  legends;  they  make  a 
ruin  doubly  interesting.  Well,  the  antiquarians  have  de- 
cided that  it  is  a  royal  tomb ;  and  it  is  almost  certain  that  it 
was  that  of  a  Nubian  Prince,  Juba  II,  the  King  of  Maureta- 

[82] 


FOUNTAIN  IN  SQUAEE  AT   CHERCHEL,  MADE 
UP  OF  EOMAN  REMAINS 


THE   TRIP  TO  CHERCHEL 

nia,  and  his  family.  His  history  is  so  interesting  in  connec- 
tion with  this  tomb.  It  won^t  take  but  a  minute  or  so  to  tell 
it  .you,  and  we  shall  find  his  capital,  Cherchel,  so  much  more 
interesting  when  we  arrive  there.  Juba  was  brought  up  at 
the  court  of  Octavius,  who  in  due  time  gave  him  the  king- 
dom of  Mauretania,  and  he  married  Selene,  daughter  of 
Cleopatra.  In  consequence  of  his  education  it  happened  that 
the  country  received  more  of  a  wise  man  and  an  artist  than 
an  administrator.  He  wrote  a  little  on  all  subjects,  and  he 
had  also  wonderful  taste  for  works  of  art  and  magnificent 
constructions,  and  he  built  some  famous  temples.  This  tomb, 
in  its  pristine  grandeur,  was  indeed  a  fit  shrine  for  so  great 
a  man.  I  wonder  if  his  wife  could  have  been  as  beautiful 
and  fascinating  as  her  mother,  Cleopatra!  How  these  ruins 
set  one's  imagination  to  work !  ** 

**  Well,**  said  the  Commander,  **that  is  all  very  interest- 
ing. But  we  must  now  go  on  if  we  wish  to  see  a  little  of 
Cherchel,  stopping  first  at  the  ruins  of  Tipaza,  if  you  like, 
and  to  reach  Ilammam  R'hira  for  the  night.** 

When  they  came  to  the  car,  the  guide  was  talking  to  a 
slim  young  Kabyle  girl,  with  the  brightest  of  handkerchiefs 
bound  around  her  head.  Her  blue  cotton  dress  was  caught 
up  on  the  shoulder  with  great  silver  fibula^  and  she  wore 
clanking  anklets  and  bracelets,  of  silver  too,  set  with  coral. 
An  ancient  crone  wrapped  in  a  coarse  mantle  stood  nearby. 

**  This  is  the  daughter  of  the  guardian.  He  is  away.  She 
will  show  us  the  tomb.  She  speaks  nothing  but  Kabyle,** 
said  the  guide. 

Here  the  Commander  caught  sight  of  the  jewellery,  and 
specially  riveted  his  gaze  on  a  bracelet  on  the  girFs  right 
arm.  It  was  of  most  cunningly  fashioned  silver,  with  bits  of 
coral  and  turquoise,  set  in  small  plaques,  richly  etched. 

**  It  is  a  beauty !  **  he  exclaimed.  **  Kabyle,  of  course !  Ask 
her  what  she  will  take  for  it  and  the  fibulae.** 

The  guide  drew  her  to  one  side,  as  if,  by  chance,  her  Ian- 
gauge  could  be  understood.  After  some  talk  and  rapid  ges- 
tures by  both,  he  came  back  and  told  them  this : 

[83] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

**  She  says  they  belong  to  her  mother,  and  she  can't  sell 
sell  them  unless  her  mother  is  willing. ' ' 

*  *  Tell  her  to  ask  her,  quick  —  we  are  in  a  hurry !  ' ' 

The  girl  ran  eagerly  off,  and  soon  returned  with  the  jewels 
in  her  hands,  and  offered  them  for  a  price  far  beyond  their 
value.  Undoubtedly  Moses  was  to  share  in  the  transaction. 
The  Commander  shook  his  head  and  offered  a  price  much 
lower.  This  was  flatly  refused.  Nothing  would  be  accepted 
but  the  first  price.  The  Commander  became  impatient  and 
time  was  flying. 

*  *  Give  it  to  her,  Moses ;  I  must  have  the  things !  ' ' 

As  he  had  no  change,  he  produced  a  bill,  but  no  one  could 
change  it,  so  he  turned  away  disappointedly. 

'  *  Let  us  see  the  interior  of  the  tomb,  then,  and  get  off. ' ' 

The  girl  seemed  ready  to  cry,  while  the  old  crone  gesticu- 
lated wildly,  and  Moses  shrank  into  himself  more  than  ever. 
The  party  now  followed  the  girl,  who  led  them  to  the  farther 
door  to  the  east,  where  they  crawled  in  by  a  narrow  opening. 
Giving  some  lighted  candles  to  each  one,  the  girl  passed  on 
through  a  narrow  corridor,  they  following,  and  came  to  a 
vaulted  chamber  which  had  nothing  in  it.  On  the  walls  were 
sculptured,  rudely,  a  lion  and  a  lioness.  Under  this  was  an- 
other corridor  leading  to  a  flight  of  steps,  up  which  they 
entered  a  long  gallery  running  around  the  wall.  Following 
it  they  came  to  two  vaulted  chambers,  which  the  guide  said 
were  exactly  in  the  centre  of  the  mound.  The  first  seemed  to 
have  been  a  vestibule;  the  second  had  three  niches  which 
must  have  been  intended  for  cinerary  urns.  The  guide  said 
nothing  had  been  found  there,  and  that  the  long  corridor  had 
once  been  closed  by  great  blocks  of  stone,  which  had  been 
broken  in  pieces  by  searchers  after  treasure  in  the  ancient 
times. 

Leaving  the  great  monument  looming  above  them,  with  its 
uncertain  history  and  its  legends,  they  went  by  the  sea,  and 
passed  more  great  vineyards  stretching  away  to  their  left. 
They  came  to  a  long  low  wall  beyond  which  they  could  see 
the  ground  for  a  long  distance  strewn  with  ruins. 

[84] 


THE   TRIP   TO   CHERCHEL 

*  *  It  is  Tipaza,  *  *  said  Moses ;  *  *  but  Monsieur  will  not  care 
to  stop.  There  is  nothing  to  see  that  he  will  care  for,  if  he  is 
in  a  hurry. '  * 

*'  But  I  am  told/'  said  the  Other-one,  *'  that  it  is  most  in- 
teresting here,  and  there  is  the  church  of  St.  Salsa  somewhere. 
I  love  her  story.*' 

However,  it  was  decided  that  either  on  the  return  or  at 
some  future  time,  a  special  visit  should  be  paid  to  the  ruins 
of  Tipaza,  and  the  Other-one  hoped  it  would  be  with  a  more 
intelligent  guide  than  Moses.  So  they  went  on,  rounding 
Mount  Chenoua,  leaving  the  sea,  and  turning  north.  They 
soon  passed  some  picturesque  ruins  of  a  Roman  aqueduct 
with  two  stories  of  arches,  between  two  high  hills. 

*  *  This  carried  the  water  to  Cherchel  in  Roman  times, ' '  said 
the  guide. 

Before  long  they  went  by  the  white  domes  of  some  Koubbas 
at  the  left.  The  guide  said  they  were  the  tombs  of  a  powerful 
Arab  family,  the  Berkani. 

Then  they  came  into  the  streets  of  Cherchel  and  regained 
the  sea.     **  What  a  glorious  situation,"  said  the  Other-one, 

*  *  with  this  line  of  green  hills  at  the  back,  and  the  sea  bath- 
ing the  shores.  Juba  II  did  well  to  embellish  this  as  his  capi- 
tal, and  make  it  a  beautiful  city  of  white  temples,  arches, 
palaces,  and  columns,  if  we  can  believe  what  is  written,  though 
as  it  looks  to-day,  with  scarcely  one  stone  left  upon  another, 
it  is  difficult  to  credit  the  statements.     The  guide-book  says: 

*  There  are  the  remains  of  luxurious  Roman  baths,  covered  by 
modern  buildings,  and  the  old  mosque,  which  is  now  a  hos- 
pital, is  ornamented  with  columns  found  here.  There  were 
also  found  very  fine  statues  which  are  now  in  the  museum.'  " 

**  Which  we  must  see  at  once,"  said  the  Commander. 

They  alighted  near  the  Esplanade,  the  public  square  over- 
looking the  sea,  with  some  fine  old  lime-trees  around  it,  and 
broken  columns  and  architectural  bits,  here  and  there.  In 
the  centre  is  a  curious  fountain,  with  the  two  basins  resting 
in  a  capital  of  a  column,  and  three  fine  colossal  heads,  of  two 
goddesses  and  one  god,  at  the  base,  and  which  must  have 

[85] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

adorned  some  temple  or  palace.  Our  couple  crossed  and 
entered  the  small  building  opposite  the  square,  going  at  once 
into  the  court.  Here  is  a  collection  of  headless,  armless,  and 
more  or  less  mutilated  statues,  some  of  beauty  and  fine  work ; 
there  are  columns, —  some  of  the  breccia  of  Mount  Chenoua, 
some  of  black  diorite, —  beautiful,  ornate  capitals ;  bases,  frag- 
ments of  rich  cornices  and  amphorae  leaning  against  the  walls. 
In  one  room  which  they  entered,  off  the  court,  were  some  ad- 
mirable bronzes,  much  corroded,  signed  with  the  artist's 
name,  and  the  vessels  in  which  they  had  been  found.  A  pla- 
card stated  that  they  had  been  taken  out  of  the  sea.  There 
was  an  Egyptian  divinity  in  black  basalt  of  excellent  work, 
considering  the  hardness  of  the  material.  It  had  a  hiero- 
glyphic inscription. 

Then  the  Commander  called  attention  to  some  lead  pipes  of 
the  times  of  the  Romans.  * '  You  can  see, ' '  he  said,  ' '  how 
they  made  their  pipe  in  those  times :  they  rolled  up  a  sheet  of 
lead,  folded  it  over  the  edges,  and  ran  molten  lead  along  the 
joinf 

There  were  one  or  two  lengths  that  had  the  maker's  name 
on  them. 

' '  We  could  reconstruct  the  entire  city  from  these  frag- 
ments, ' '  said  the  Commander.  *  *  It  must  have  been  a  wonder, 
judging  from  all  these  remains !  ' ' 

Going  out,  the  two  found  Moses  out  by  the  door.  He  had 
been  languidly  indifferent  to  their  wanderings.  He  now 
asked  weariedly  if  they  wished  to  go  and  see  the  mosque, 
which,  he  said,  *  *  had  eighty-nine  beautiful  green  granite 
columns  that  had  been  taken  from  an  ancient  temple, ' '  but  as 
the  afternoon  was  waning,  the  Commander  said  they  must 
go  on. 

Returning  on  the  same  road  they  soon  passed  by  the  Roman 
aqueduct  again  with  its  ruined  arches,  even  more  picturesque 
in  the  afternoon 's  long  shadows.  Then  a  great  farm  came  in 
view,  with  many  low  buildings  and  wide  vineyards  stretching 
away;  then  the  ruins  of  the  aqueduct  that  took  the  waters 
to  Cherchel  centuries  ago,  more  picturesque  even  than  the 

[86] 


THE   TRIP  TO   CHERCHEL 

other,  with  a  triple  row  of  arches,  and  vines  and  vagrant 
weeds  flaunting  in  the  breeze,  from  the  crevices  where  they 
had  found  soil.  Not  far  from  here  the  car  passed  another 
of  those  nondescript  stages,  loaded  to  the  brim,  and  heads  — 
sticking  out  in  all  directions  —  of  Arabs,  so  happy  to  ride. 
The  driver  under  the  capote,  however,  had  three  men  beside 
him  who  did  not  appear  so  calm  and  contented.  They  were 
English,  judging  from  their  wejl-cut  clothes,  and  looked,  all 
three,  scowling  and  cross,  and  they  cast  envious  glances  at 
the  contented  occupants  of  the  motor-car,  but  it  rolled  swiftly 
by  them,  enveloping  the  coach  in  a  cloud  of  dust  in  addition 
to  what  it  had  already  raised  itself. 

As  the  car  went  smoothly  on,  there  were  always  curious, 
or  interesting,  or  annoying,  groups  on  the  road  or  by  the  side 
of  it.  The  motor  now  came  to  a  large  flock  of  black-faced 
sheep,  their  Arab  shepherds  urging  them  on,  by  howling  and 
brandishing  clubs.  A  cloud  of  dust  spread  on  all  sides,  and 
from  the  shrieks  of  the  Arabs  as  the  car  drew  nearer,  they 
appeared  to  believe  that  it  was  about  to  roll  over  and  crush 
their  flock.  The  bleating  of  the  lambs  and  the  baaing  of  the 
sheep,  mixed  with  the  yelping  barks  of  the  shepherd  dogs,  and 
the  howls  of  the  Arabs,  made  a  pandemonium. 

*  *  Slowly !  Slowly !  Adrian !  *  *  cried  the  Commander. 
Adrian  put  his  car  to  second  speed  and  they  just  crawled 
through  the  frightened  flock  without  injuring  a  single  one. 
The  shepherds,  however,  showed  no  gratitude,  but  hurled 
after  the  car  what  sounded  like  terrible  invectives. 

A  long,  beautiful  avenue  of  lime-trees  led  to  Zurich  where 
they  turned  east  to  Marengo,  which  is  an  important  town  at 
the  west  end  of  the  great  fertile  Mitidja  Plain. 

**  There  is  a  great  market  here,  sir,  every  Wednesday,  very 
interesting  to  see,  where  hundreds  of  natives  come  with  their 
herds  of  cattle,  and  flocks  of  sheep  and  goats,'*  said  the  guide. 

Beyond  Marengo  they  took  a  road  turning  sharply  to  the 
south.  In  the  later  afternoon  the  view  was  lovely, —  the  long 
level  barley  and  wheat  fields,  with  their  green  intensified  by 
the  low  rays  of  the  sun  sinking  gradually  in  the  West.    Afar 

[87] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

the  fields  ran  to  the  mountains,  rose,  purple,  and  deep  blue. 
Then  some  hills  came  near,  closed  them  in,  and  shut  off  the 
sun,  so  they  were  in  twilight  for  some  time.  When  they  came 
into  the  open  again,  they  saw  a  misty  round  object  afar,  loom- 
ing up  into  the  rose-blue  sky. 

' '  See, ' '  cried  the  Commander,  ' '  there  is  the  Tomb  of  the 
Christian!  " 

Then  they  began  to  wind  upwards  around  hill  after  hill, 
some  cultivated  to  their  tops,  some  covered  with  forests  of  the 
Aleppo  pine.  The  party  were  all  silent,  impressed  with 
the  still  loveliness  of  the  sky  and  the  evanescent  color  of  the 
mountains ;  then  a  great  black  mountain  rose  afar  and  seemed 
sternly  to  refuse  to  clothe  itself  in  the  sunset's  lovely  colors. 

* '  What  is  the  stern  mountain  called  ?  ' '  asked  the  Other-one. 

' '  That  is  Mount  Zaccar ;  and  Miliana,  where  we  go  to- 
morrow, lies  on  its  slope.'* 

The  car  entered  some  groves  of  trees,  and  then  came  into  a 
garden  where  date-palms,  aloe-trees,  tangerine  orange-trees, 
and  pines,  all  blended  their  odors  and  made  the  evening  air 
sweet  indeed.  They  stopped  before  the  light  and  airy  hotel 
of  the  Baths.  Out  bustled  the  porter  and  some  waiters,  and 
our  wayfarers  were  received  with  open  arms,  for  motor  cars 
came  not  often.  Our  party  had  an  excellent  dinner  in  a  great 
bare  dining-room.  There  were  few  travellers,  and  the  Other- 
one  thought  it  really  too  elaborate  for  a  mere  handful  of 
guests.  They  spent  the  night  in  a  big  and  airy  room,  and 
slept,  in  the  stillness  that  settled  around  the  hotel,  the  dream- 
less sleep  of  conscientious  and  most  weary  motorists. 


[88] 


CHAPTER  VI 

HAHMAM    b'hIRA    AND    MILIANA   TO    ALGIERS  —  BY    THE    GORGE 
OP  THE   CHIPFA  AND   BLIDA 

THE  next  morning,  the  Other-one  was  awakened  hy  deli- 
cious bird  notes  just  outside  her  window,  one  long,  soft 
whistle  answered  by  another,  not  far  off,  with  a  musical  trill 
and  a  finish  with  a  warble.  So  far,  she  had  seen  or  heard  few 
birds,  so  these  gave  special  delight,  but  they  were  so  shy 
she  could  not  find  out  what  they  were  though  she  peered  out 
into  the  trees. 

Going  down  to  her  bath  that  morning,  early,  the  Other-one 
found  in  the  basement  of  the  hotel  a  place  very  well  fitted  up. 
There  are  two  large  swimming-baths,  each  thirty  feet  long  by 
fifteen  wide.  One  has  a  temperature  of  ninety-five  degrees, 
and  the  other  a  hundred  and  ten.  There  is  an  early  hour  for 
the  men,  and  later  the  baths  are  given  over  to  the  women  for 
the  morning. 

The  Other-one  related  to  the  Commander  sometime  after- 
wards her  experience  of  how  she  had  been  told  by  the  fat 
bath-woman  to  remain  in  the  first  bath,  for  fifteen  minutes, 
and  to  ring  the  bell  when  that  time  ended ;  therefore  she  had 
seated  herself  comfortably  in  one  of  the  painted  iron  chairs 
in  the  deliciously  agreeable  water,  reflecting  upon  the  luxu- 
riant times  the  ancient  Romans  must  have  had,  lolling  around 
on  couches  and  conversing  with  their  friends,  or  playing 
games  in  the  water,  in  their  great  baths  the  ruins  of  which  to- 
day show  such  former  magnificence.  At  the  time  specified 
she  rang  for  the  bath-woman,  who  said  she  must  go  into  the 
next  basin  and  remain  but  five  minutes.  The  Lady  did  as  bid- 
den ;  climbing  the  short  steps  between  the  two  baths,  she  con- 
fidently plunged  one  foot  in  the  water,  to  follow  it  with  the 
other,  when  she  found  the  water  so  scalding  hot  that  she 

f89  1 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

scrambled  out,  screaming  so  loudly  that  a  very  stout  woman, 
lolling  luxuriously  in  a  big  arm  chair  in  the  water,  was  scared 
nearly  into  hysterics,  being  one  who  was  taking  the  baths  for 
her  nerves,  she  said. 

* '  And  think ! ' '  added  the  Other-one,  *  *  there  was  no  cold 
plunge  after  all  this  hot  water !  They  let  me  dress  and  go  up 
at  once  into  the  cool  air.  I  fully  expected  to  have  pneu- 
monia after  it,  and  have  not  dared  tell  you  before  about  my 
bathing  experience. ' ' 

Accompanied  by  the  agreeable  manager,  the  couple  went 
for  a  short  walk  in  the  grounds.  He  had  much  to  say,  as  was 
natural,  about  the  beneficial  effects  of  the  waters,  and  his 
account  was  certainly  true,  from  all  the  other  reports. 

**  The  water,''  said  he,  **  is  of  a  saline,  sulphurous,  and 
lime  composition ;  most  beneficial  in  chronic  rheumatism,  gout, 
some  forms  of  paralysis,  nervous  and  cutaneous  diseases.  For 
drinking  water,  there  is  a  chalybeate  spring  of  great  impor- 
tance, not  far  from  the  hotel  and  brought  to  it  in  pipes.  It  is 
most  agreeable  to  drink,  as  it  has  a  little  carbonic  acid  in  it, 
and  is  very  beneficial  for  dyspepsia,  chronic  affections  of  the 
liver,  and  malaria. 

*  *  It  is  certainly  a  beautiful  and  peaceful  place  here ;  one 
could  never  weary  of  the  views  of  those  grand  mountain 
peaks, ' '  said  the  Other-one.  *  *  Let  us  stay  here  forever,  and 
let  the  work-a-day  world  go  on,  far  from  us !  We  would  only 
die  of  old  age  here,  for  no  disease  could  get  its  clutch  upon 
us,  with  such  w^ater  to  scald  in,  and  the  chalybeate  spring  to 
drink.'' 

The  manager  smiled  politely  and  went  on,  pointing  to  the 
great  pine  forest  just  beyond,  above  these  grounds. 

**  That  forest  consists  of  about  eighteen  hundred  acres, 
and  there  is  much  sport  there  for  those  who  like  it.  Par- 
tridges, hares,  and  rabbits  abound  there,  and  some  wild  boars 
and  jackals  are  found." 

* '  I  hope  there  are  no  lions  or  panthers,  which  we  have  read 
are  in  African  forests,  there." 

'*  No  lions,  but  panthers  and  hyenas  are  shot  there." 

[90] 


HAMMAM  R'HIRA  AND   MILIANA 

**  Decidedly,  we  will  not  come  here  to  live!  "  exclaimed  the 
Other-one.  *'  I  prefer  to  die  with  some  comfortable  disease, 
to  being  clawed  by  a  hyena  or  chewed  up  by  a  panther.  *  * 

The  manager  did  not  feel  called  upon  to  smile  at  this  re- 
mark, but  went  on  again :  *  *  Fifteen  thousand  natives  come 
here  annually  to  bathe,  with  a  caravan  of  camels  and  mules 
and  donkeys,  but  the  place  where  they  go  is  some  distance 
from  the  hotel,'*  added  the  manager  hastily.  **  They  call 
these  the  *  baths  of  King  Solomon.  *  They  believe  he  has,  in 
the  mountains,  many  camels  loaded  with  coal,  to  be  burned 
for  keeping  up  the  high  temperature  of  the  water,  and  they 
invoke  him,  upon  burning  benzoin  before  the  baths.  In  a 
place  entirely  separate  from  the  bathing-place  they  have 
sometimes  very  curious  rites,  such  as  the  sacrifice  of  animals 
of  all  kinds,  ablutions,  and  processions,  with  chanting.  If  you 
could  be  here  at  the  time,  on  some  Monday,  which  is  the  spe- 
cial day,  usually,  for  these  rites,  it  would  interest  you  both 
very  much.*' 

This  was  an  ancient  and  favorite  bathing-place  of  the  Ro- 
mans. You  see  many  remains  of  their  time,  of  statues, 
columns,  and  bits  of  other  marbles  around  the  grounds.  It 
was  called  here  Aquae  Calidae,  and  was  most  flourishing  in 
the  time  of  the  reign  of  the  Emperor  Tiberius,  A.  D.  32. 

Thanking  the  agreeable  manager  for  all  his  information 
the  travellers  were  soon  off  again. 

It  was  a  gloriously  fresh  morning.  The  car  flew  down 
the  long  hill  from  Hammam  R'hira  like  a  bird.  At  the  road 
to  the  right  they  turned  sharply  off,  and  then  the  way  wound 
up  again  by  curves.  Great  mountains  thrust  their  soft  blue 
peaks  into  the  sky;  Mount  Zaccar  looked  majestic  in  the 
morning  sunlight.  Here  and  there  they  passed  flocks  of  sheep 
feeding  on  the  hillsides,  guarded  by  small  Arab  boys  or  girls, 
who  called  shrilly  after  the  car  as  they  hugged  their  ragged 
garments  closer  around  them  in  the  fresh  morning  air.  Some 
of  the  hills  were  green  with  the  soft,  shining-leaved  lentisque 
bushes,  others  were  golden  with  the  genesta,  others  still  had 
masses  of  dwarf  palm  growing  on  them.  The  travellers  climbed 

[91] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

a  height  and  saw  for  an  instant  the  vivid  blue  of  the  sea. 
Against  the  pale  sky,  off  at  the  right,  the  misty  outlines  of 
the  Great  Atlas  rose.  Then  a  small  domain  of  cultivated 
land,  with  fruit  trees  and  vines  was  passed,  and  they  came  to 
some  scattered  ruins  near  a  modern  town  called  Margueritte. 

The  great  Zaccar  mount  rose  to  the  sky  before  them,  and 
on  its  steep  flanks  they  saw  Miliana  with  its  red-roofed  build- 
ings, the  great  frames  over  the  mines,  and  the  gardens 
around,  white  and  pink  with  the  blossoms  of  fruit  trees. 

Southwest  were  the  outlines  of  the  Ouarsenis  Mountains, 
and  the  great  Chelif  plain  stretching  from  the  soft  greens  of 
the  grain  fields  below  them  to  the  misty  blue  of  the  distance. 
Here  Moses  felt  called  upon  to  deliver  a  little  information, 
which  he  did  with  some  reluctance. 

*  *  This  is  a  wonderful  country  for  fruit, ' '  he  said.  * '  There 
are  peach,  apple,  pear,  plum,  apricot,  and  fig  trees  all  through 
this  region.  When  the  fruit  is  ripe  one  can  have  all  he  can 
eat  for  a  sou.'^ 

**  I  can  well  believe  it,  with  all  this  wealth  of  blossoms  we 
see,'*  said  the  Commander. 

Under  the  vines  in  many  of  the  vineyards  they  now  passed, 
the  ground  was  reddish-purple,  with  a  mass  of  plants  with 
small  flowers  of  that  hue.  The  guide  could  not  tell  the  name 
of  the  flowers,  but  he  knew  ''the  French  made  a  sort  of  tisane 
of  them." 

"  If  I  were  a  guide,  and  letting  myself  out  for  a  good  price 
every  day,  I  would  learn,  in  good  English,  the  name  of  every 
bird,  and  every  tree,  bush  and  flower  of  the  country  I  had  to 
take  tourists  through,''  said  the  Commander.  "  I  should  not 
be  contented  to  deal  out  to  my  patrons  just  scraps  of  unre- 
liable information  I  had  learned  out  of  some  guide-book,  on 
any  subject  but  that  about  which  the  traveller  desires  to 
learn." 

' '  Yes,  sir !  "  said  Moses,  humbly. 

As  the  tourists  came  nearer,  great  red  heaps  showed  them- 
selves on  the  flanks  of  the  mountains,  and  black  holes  with 
timber  constructions  over  them.     There  was  a  narrow  rail- 

[92] 


MOVlMi   NOMADS,  ON  TIIK   DKSKWr 


AUTOMoi: 


:foke  tombeau  de  la  ciihetienxe, 
cherchel 


THE  CAK  BEFORE  THE  OLD  IVY- 
COVERED  MINARET  USED  AS 
A  CLOCK  TOWER,  MILIANA 


m^j 

I't^HBVfV 

^K^^^k^^^^H|*'4k~>M^~<v«flH^«|iM4^to|^p^^**  J^  .  •^■kS   ^-          ^  ' 

ONE  OF  THE  NONDESCRIPT  STAGES  OF  ALGERIA 
AND  TUNISIA 


HAMMAM  R'HIRA  AND   MILIANA 

road  running  up  the  steep  incline,  and  many  tiny  dump-cars 
at  the  side  of  the  road.  The  Commander  became  much  inter- 
ested, and,  turning  to  Moses,  tried  to  extract  at  least  a  little 
from  him  about  the  mines. 

The  guide  had  some  knowledge. 

**  Those  mines,  sir,  are  of  hematite,  and  they  get  out  about 
a  hundred  thousand  tons  a  year.** 

They  now  came  to  Miliana  and  entered  by  the  Zaccar  gate, 
one  of  the  two  piercing  the  old  walls  around  the  town,  which 
were  first  constructed  by  the  Romans  aroimd  an  ancient  city, 
and  rebuilt  by  the  Berbers  and  the  Turks.  The  car  rolled 
down  a  street  with  crystal  clear  water  running  at  the  sides 
and  shaded  by  great  lime-trees.  They  came  to  the  public 
square  or  the  Place  de  TEglise,  where  is  a  great  clock  con- 
structed in  an  ancient  Moorish  minaret,  that  looks  like  a 
tower  of  living  green,  so  draped  in  ivy  is  it.  Near  by,  they 
found  the  Hotel  du  Commerce,  where  a  pleasant  landlord  took 
them  into  a  room  decorated  with  gay  placards,  and  seated 
them  at  a  table  with  a  clean  white  cloth.  At  other  tables 
were  some  French  officers,  in  their  light  blue  uniforms  and 
much  braid,  who  were  hilarious  over  their  wine.  They  all 
stopped  a  moment  to  stare  at  the  Other-one,  but  finding 
nothing  in  her  looks  or  dress  to  especially  hold  their  atten- 
tion, they  again  fell  to  drinking  while  waiting  for  their 
luncheon. 

The  Other-one  read  that  **  Miliana  was  occupied  by  the 
French  troops  in  1840,  but  the  garrison  left  there  was  be- 
sieged by  Abd-el-Kadir  and  suffered  such  privations  that,  out 
of  twelve  thousand  men,  only  one  hundred  were  effective 
when  General  Changarnier  relieved  the  garrison. 

**  Sidi  Ahmed  Ben  Yussuf,  a  poor  but  virtuous  saint,  who 
was  still  more  remarkable  for  his  epigrammatic  and  sarcastic 
poetry  than  for  the  example  of  his  life,  said  that  the  Miliana 
women  of  his  day  *  usurped  the  place  of  men,  and  commanded 
when  it  was  their  duty  to  obey*  —  an  illustration  of  the 
women's  rights  question,  mooted  in  this  out-of-the-way  region 
some  four  hundred  years  ago.** 

[93] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

*'  There  is  a  beautiful  terrace  here  in  the  town  where  the 
view  is  wonderful,  overlooking  all  the  valley  of  the  Chelif .  I 
should  like  to  go  there, ' '  said  the  lady ;  * '  and  you  will  be  in- 
terested to  know  that  one  hundred  and  twenty  thousand 
gallons  of  water  in  an  hour  come  from  our  great,  stern  moun- 
tain, Zaccar.  It  is  pure  and  clear  and  comes  with  great  force, 
so  it  is  utilized  in  many  ways, —  to  light  the  town  by  electric- 
ity, to  work  the  corn  mills,  and  the  other  factories. '  * 

^  *  Well,  * '  said  the  Commander,  getting  up  from  the  table, 
when  the  lunch  was  ended,  *  *  I  am  glad  to  know  all  this.  But 
are  you  aware  that  we  are  one  hundred  and  twenty-six  kilo- 
metres from  Algiers?  What  is  your  opinion  about  starting 
off  at  once?  '' 

' '  Let  us  just  go  and  get  the  view  from  the  terrace.  It  is 
glorious !  ' ' 

So  they  went  through  the  street  and  looked  down  over  the 
terrace,  and  saw  a  view  of  which  mere  words  can  give  no  ade- 
quate idea.  They  leaned  over  the  parapet  under  the  old  lime- 
trees,  and  looked  over  the  snowy  and  pink  flush  of  the  blos- 
soming fruit  trees,  across  the  emerald  valley  of  the  Chelif, 
with  white  villages  dotted  here  and  there  on  this  green  ocean, 
to  the  far  distant  peaks  of  the  Ouarsenis, —  at  the  southwest 
some  high  ones  silvered  with  snow ;  others  blue,  lower,  and  as 
misty  as  a  dream.  Before  them  the  great  Atlas  range  was 
blue  and  green,  w^ith  a  bloom  on  it  like  that  on  a  plum.  Our 
couple  stood  silent,  and  as  they  turned  away  the  Other-one 
said  reverently,  *'  And  the  glory  thereof  is  the  Lord's!  '' 

Down  the  hills  again  and  rounding  a  sharp  curve,  the  car 
came  suddenly  upon  an  old  Arab,  bundled  in  his  burnous  and 
huddled  up  on  a  donkey,  ambling  placidly  along.  If  the  evil 
one  had  appeared  with  horns  and  hoofs,  the  ancient  man 
could  not  have  been  more  frightened.  He  gave  a  loud  yell 
and  fell  off  the  donkey,  in  a  heap  on  the  ground.  The  animal 
galloped  off  down  the  hill.  The  Commander  has  a  kind  heart. 
He  stopped  the  car  and  sent  Adrian  flying  down  the  hill  after 
the  donkey,  while  he  himself  hastened  to  pick  up  the  old  Arab, 
and  straighten  him  out,  by  the  time  the  chauffeur  had  se- 

[94] 


HAMMAM   R'HIRA  AND   MILIANA 

cured  and  brought  back  the  donkey.  They  settled  the  fright- 
ened old  man  on  its  back,  while  the  guide  held  the  donkey,  and 
appeared  to  consider  it  a  very  foolish  thing  to  waste  time  on 
an  old  Arab.  They  bade  the  old  man  stay  where  he  was  until 
Adrian  had  moved  the  car  on  some  distance, —  very  slowly. 
They  they  were  off  again,  with  a  sigh  of  relief,  still  going 
down,  meeting  flocks  of  sheep,  with  their  shepherds  singing 
a  monotonous  chant. 

**  I  declare!**  cried  the  Commander,  after  we  had  been 
stopped  three  or  four  times  by  the  flocks,  which  always  ran 
wildly  right  into  the  car;  **  I  don*t  believe  we  can  reach  the 
gorge  before  dark,  and  it  will  be  too  late  to  see  anything.** 

After  nine  kilometres,  at  length  they  rolled  through  Affre- 
ville's  animated  street  of  cafes  and  shops  —  the  former 
abounding — and  its  French-looking,  two-storied  houses  with 
small  balconies  overlooking  the  street.  Out  again  to  green 
fields.  All  along  the  road  there  were  men  sitting  by  heaps  of 
stone,  breaking  them  for  road  mending,  though  the  road 
seemed  very  good.  They  crossed  the  Chelif  River  over  a 
bridge.  It  was  a  mere  thread  of  water  in  a  stony  bed ;  but 
the  guide  said,  **  When  the  snows  melt,  the  river  becomes  a 
rushing  torrent,  and  it  is  the  longest  river  in  Algeria.  *  * 

They  passed  a  cemetery  with  great,  melancholy  cypresses. 
The  Other-one  gave  a  sigh  for  the  poor,  homesick  colonists 
buried  there,  those  who  died  in  this  wild  country  far  from 
their  beloved  France.  The  roadside  was  now  blue  with  iris, 
where  water  seeped  up  in  hollows;  then  came  a  long  field 
higher,  where  many  pale,  pink  flowers,  on  long  stalks  and 
with  lily-like  leaves,  waved  in  the  wind. 

**  That  is  the  asphodel,**  said  the  guide  quickly,  proud  to 
know  the  name  of  the  flower.  **  The  French  make  from  it  a 
false  kind  of  absinth,  which  is  very  harmful  to  drink.**  A 
strong  and  pungent  odor  was  borne  on  the  breeze  from  these 
flowers. 

'*  The  asphodel!  Oh,  yes!  **  said  the  Other-one,  **  I  have 
read  that  among  the  Greeks  the  asphodel  was  the  peculiar 
plant  of  the  dead,  and  its  pale  flowers  covered  the  meadows 

[95] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

of  Hades.  It  grew  in  waste  places,  and  was  sometimes  planted 
near  tombs  in  Greece,  for  the  Greeks  imagined  the  manes  of 
their  friends  fed  on  its  roots.  It  is  botanically  called 
Asphodelus  racemosus. '  * 

Now  they  came  to  where  the  hills  rolled  off,  in  green  waves, 
to  the  Atlas  range.  Bowling  down  a  hill,  they  ran  into  a 
group  of  Arabs,  some  walking  and  some  humped  up  on  don- 
keys. Loud  shrieks  rent  the  air,  and  the  donkeys  trotted 
off  panic-stricken,  bouncing  their  riders,  who  were  more 
frightened  than  they,  even,  and  whose  burnouses  flew  wildly 
in  the  air.  Again  the  motorists  had  to  stop  and  move  slowly 
through  the  excited  Arabs. 

Soon  they  came  to  a  mountain  stream,  trickling  down  into 
a  long  cement  basin.  It  was  a  lovely,  tranquil  spot,  the  plash- 
ing of  the  water  in  the  long  basin,  and  the  breeze  in  the  pines, 
being  the  only  noises  one  could  hear.  Suddenly  an  Arab 
dropped  down  noiselessly  from  somewhere.  He  took  no  notice 
of  the  car,  contrary  to  the  usual  vivid  curiosity,  but  went  to 
the  fountain  and  placidly  washed  his  face  and  hands  as  un- 
consciously and  unconcernedly  as  though  there  were  not  such 
things  as  motor  cars.  With  a  twinkle  in  his  eye,  the  Com- 
mander gave  the  horn  a  quick  pressure,  and  as  the  shrill 
notes  suddenly  rent  the  silence,  the  Arab  gave  a  leap  into  the 
air,  and  started  on  a  lope,  down  the  hill,  at  last  stirred  from 
his  placidity. 

The  car,  having  had  its  drink,  appeared  refreshed  and 
grateful,  the  Other-one  thought,  for  she  could  never  rid  her- 
self of  the  idea  that  it  was  a  sentient  being,  and  had  pangs 
of  hunger  and  thirst.  They  passed  through  a  small  town, 
and,  for  the  first  time,  they  saw  great  nests  of  sticks  and 
straws  built  on,  and  near,  the  chimneys  of  small  houses.  On 
one  nest  they  saw  mother  stork  sitting  patiently,  while  father 
stork  eyed  his  mate  with  grave  contemplation. 

*'  They  bring  great  good  luck  when  they  come  to  a  house,'* 
said  the  guide.  * '  No  one  here  will  have  the  nest  destroyed  or 
the  storks  driven  away,  no  matter  how  inconvenient  it  may  be 
to  have  the  great  nests  on  the  roofs.'* 

[96] 


HAMMAM   R'HIRA  AND   MILIANA 

In  this  town  were  many  Arabs  in  the  street  wearing  such  a 
grave,  patriarchal  air,  with  their  long  burnouses,  that  it 
seemed  as  though  one  had  harked  back  to  Bible  times. 

Again  they  went  on  their  way  rejoicing  and  soon  saw, 
afar,  across  fields  of  barley,  the  white  houses  of  Medea  on  its 
plateau,  three  thousand  feet  above  the  sea.  They  rolled 
through  a  quaint  gateway  and  down  the  boulevard  bordered 
by  trees.  Adrian  pulled  the  car  up  at  a  little  place  where 
a  sign,  out  of  all  proportion  to  the  shop,  indicated  that  here 
one  might  purchase  essence  —  as  the  French  call  gasoline. 
While  the  chauffeur  was  filling  the  tank  from  the  bidons, 
lugged  out  languidly  by  a  dirty  Arab  boy,  natives  began  to- 
pack  around  the  car  and  stare  curiously  at  the  Other-one,  who 
felt  as  if  she  were  some  strange  animal  in  a  travelling 
menagerie. 

The  car  left  the  town  by  another  gate  and  rolled  down  a 
fine  broad  road.  At  the  left  rose  the  rugged  chain  of  the 
Atlas.  Near  the  foot  of  this  incline,  a  tire  burst,  and  while 
Adrian  patiently  replaced  it,  the  Other-one  called  to  tlie 
Commander  to  come  for  a  walk  down  the  road.  They  went 
slowly  down  the  incline,  in  a  stillness  that  couM  be  felt. 
They  came  to  a  halt  on  the  edge  of  a  rocky  cliff,  which 
dropped  down  sheer,  some  hundred  feet,  to  a  narrow  green 
valley,  where  the  poor  buildings  of  a  meagre  farm  could  be 
seen,  with  some  small  vineyards,  bordering  on  a  mere  thread 
of  a  stream. 

**  An  African  farm!  How  can  they  ever  get  out?"  ex- 
claimed the  Other-one.  **  I  see  nothing  but  steep,  rocky  cliffs 
rising  from  the  farm  land.  And  such  tiny  fields  —  how  do 
they  live  down  there!    On  rocks  and  grass,  I  believe!  " 

It  was  late  when  the  party  came  to  the  rent  made  through 
the  Atlas  Mountains  by  the  Oued  Chiffa  and  entered  into  the 
gloom  of  the  great  overhanging  rocks,  the  road  cut  along  their 
flanks.     The  Atlas  peaks  towered  in  grandeur  above  all. 

**  It  is  too  late,  my  lady,*'  said  the  guide  ruefully,  **  to  see 
the  monkeys,  yet  it  is  well  always  to  look." 

So  he  bestirred  himself  more  than  he  had  ever  done  on  the 

[971 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

trip,  so  far,  and  peered  from  under  his  old  felt  hat,  right  and 
left,  at  the  dark  foliage  clothing  the  rocks.  They  crossed  the 
foaming  river,  dashing  over  the  rocks  below,  and  went  along 
by  lace-like  cascades  that  fell  from  above  down  the  rocks  into 
the  river.  They  came  soon  to  the  Ruisseau  des  Singes,  a 
foamy  stream,  tumbling  over  some  rocks,  in  seeming  haste  to 
cast  itself  into  the  Oued  Chiffa. 

**  Here  one  always  sees  the  monkeys  at  the  right  time,'* 
said  the  guide  gloomily,  '  *  but  now,  no !  " 

Monkeys  were  evidently  his  trump  cards ! 

The  Other-one  felt  a  relief.  Now  she  might  yield  herself  to 
the  feelings  caused  by  the  sight  of  the  grand  and  gloomy 
gorge,  the  deep  silence  broken  only  by  the  river  rushing  over 
the  rocks  below,  the  plashing  of  the  cascades,  and  the  wind 
rustling  the  branches  of  the  trees. 

Suddenly,  Adrian,  whose  head  had  been  turning  right  and 
left,  in  sympathy  with  the  guide's  desire,  pulled  up  the  car 
and  called,  ' '  Look !  Look !  ' '  pointing  to  some  trees  at  the 
side  of  the  road,  where  the  rocks  fell  away.  Now  it  was 
lighter,  and  upon  looking  up  into  the  branches  overhanging 
the  road,  they  really  saw  three  or  four  little  gray  creatures 
leaping  from  limb  to  limb  of  the  tree ;  but  in  a  moment  they 
vanished. 

* '  There,  my  lady, ' '  said  Moses,  contentedly,  * '  you  see  I 
have  told  you  the  truth." 

**  But  they  all  assured  me,  at  the  hotel,  that  in  this  gorge  I 
would  see  hundreds  of  monkeys." 

'  *  But,  my  lady,  it  is  so  late  —  the  animals  will  not  come  out 
when  the  night  begins  to  fall.  In  the  daytime  it  is  different ; 
you  may  see  hundreds,  even  thousands,  if  you  will  come  with 
me  again." 

As  they  came  out  of  the  gorge,  after  seven  miles  of  road 
through  it,  the  air  seemed  full  of  golden  light,  and  each  peak 
in  the  east  was  glowing  in  rosy  purple,  and  gold,  too. 

At  the  right,  they  took  the  road  for  Blida  rolling  over  the 
now  darkening  plain,  crossed  two  bridges,  and  entered  under 
a  long  arch  of  sycamore-trees  into  Blida.     It  was  so  late, 

[  98  ] 


HAMMAM   R'HIRA  AND   MILIANA 

now,  they  got  very  little  impression  of  the  town.  They 
trusted  to  Moses  to  tell  them  all  he  would  about  it.  In 
answer  to  the  Commander's  query  he  said,  **  There  are  here 
the  finest  groves  of  orange  and  lemon  trees  in  all  Algeria  and 
it  is  the  home  of  the  tangerine.  Millions  of  oranges  are  ex- 
ported annually  to  Paris.  Also,  there  are  great  gardens  of 
flowers,  and  these  are  exported  too,  for  making  perfumes. 
There  are  the  cavalry  barracks  and  stud  here,  which  take  up 
about  a  quarter  of  the  town,  and  have  stabling  for  three  hun- 
dred stallions.  Many  beautiful  horses  of  the  best  existing 
races  are  to  be  found  there.*' 

**  You  have  done  well,  Moses,  and  made  me  decide  to  come 
here  some  time  when  we  can  see  everything.  If  it  had  not 
been  for  all  our  delays  we  could  have  seen  all.'* 

When  they  went  out  of  Blida,  all  the  tints  of  rose  and  gold 
had  faded  from  the  sky.  At  a  late  hour  they  descended  into 
the  comfortable  warmth  of  their  hotel,  and  found  that  the 
pretty  Marguerite  had  guarded  well  their  household  gods. 


[99] 


CHAPTER  VII 

A  DAY  IN  ALGIERS THEN  OFF  TO  BOU  SAADA 

THE  Commander  would  have  rejoiced  if  he  could  have 
risen  with  the  lark  and  speeded  off  on  the  road  to  Bou 
Saada  the  next  day.  Indeed,  he  had,  with  some  hesitation, 
proposed  this  plan  the  night  before,  upon  the  return  from 
Cherchel :  but  the  Other-one  at  once  vetoed  it : 

'  *  We  must  rest,  you  know,  after  such  an  exciting  ride  as 
the  one  to  Cherchel.  Also  I  have  a  little  shopping  to  do  for 
some  necessary  things." 

As  the  Commander  spread  his  Cartes  Tarides  on  the  table, 
preparatory  to  studying  out  the  route  they  were  to  take  to 
Bou  Saada,  and  the  towns  they  were  to  pass  through,  he  said : 

'  *  I  Ve  been  talking,  downstairs,  to  a  Mr.  Wilson,  who  has 
travelled  much  in  this  country  and  has  interested  himself  in 
the  native  tribes,  trying  to  find  out  in  what  respect  they  dif- 
fer from  our  Indians.  He  tells  me  that  the  Ouled  Nails  be- 
long to  the  big  tribe  of  the  Zoreba,  and  occupy  a  very  large 
district  from  Bou  Saada  to  the  Ziban,  or  that  region  that  ex- 
tends east  and  west  from  Biskra.  All  the  dancing  girls  that 
are  seen  in  the  big  towns  and  on  the  road  are  from  the  Ouled 
Nail  tribe.  They  go  out  early  from  their  tribe,  exercise  their 
calling,  amass  a  quantity  of  jewels  and  some  money,  then  fre- 
quently go  back  to  their  homes  and  marry,  settling  down  to  a 
life  of  virtue.  It  often  happens  that  these  girls,  when  off 
practising  their  profession,  are  assassinated  for  their  jewels. 
They  are  very  dark  in  color,  tattoo  themselves  like  savages, 
affect  the  gayest  of  colors  in  their  dress,  and  wear  quantities 
of  jewels.  They  mix  their  hair  with  wool  and  plaster  it  with 
grease,  forming  great  braids,  which  they  loop  down  over  their 
faces,  framing  them,  as  it  were,  in  ebony.  We  shall  see  many 
of  them  in  Bou  Saada,  their  own  country." 

[  100  ] 


OFF   TO    BOU    SAADA 

**  For  my  part/*  said  the  Other-one,  *'  I  have  not  been  able 
to  find  very  much  about  the  country  of  Bou  Saada.  It  is  an 
oasis  with  a  river  running  through  it,  which  has  very  pic- 
turesque banks.  The  name  means,  *  the  place  of  happiness. ' 
By  the  way,  did  you  tell  the  guide  to  come  early  to-morrow 
morning?  ** 

**  No!  *'  replied  the  Commander.  "  The  fact  is,  I  have  de- 
cided not  to  take  a  guide.  These  men  do  not  know  much, 
anyway,  only  in  spots;  they  have  no  sense  of  direction,  and 
are  generally,  whether  picturesquely  clothed  or  otherwise,  a 
nuisance.  With  my  intuitive  feeling  in  regard  to  the  cardinal 
points,  with  good  maps,  and  the  common  sense  which  you  will 
surely  allow  I  have;  with  your  little  knowledge  of  French, 
and  Adrian's  proficiency,  we  may  venture  to  go  anywhere  in 
this  country  without  a  guide,  excepting  in  the  towns  where 
we  are  in  a  hurry  to  see  as  much  as  possible  in  a  limited 
time." 

**  But  what  if  we  should  get  cast  away  by  some  accident  to 
the  motor  and  find  ourselves  among  some  of  those  savage 
tribes  of  whom  we  have  read,  and  who  speak  only  their  own 
tongue?  **  objected  the  Other-one. 

*  *  Nonsense !  *  *  answered  the  Commander.  *  *  We  should  be 
as  safe  there  as  in  our  own  country!  The  French  have 
soldiers  stationed  everywhere,  and  there  is  no  tribe  so  remote 
but  that  it  is  under  surveillance :  and  there  must  be  some,  in 
any  tribe,  who  speak  French  from  necessity.  Besides,  we 
carry  plenty  of  tires,  and  there  is  that  big  tank  for  a  reserve 
of  gasoline;  it  carries  twenty-five  gallons.'* 

The  Other-one  looked  unconvinced,  but  made  no  reply,  and 
the  Commander  said,  **  It  is  two  hundred  and  fifty  kilometres 
from  here  to  Bou  Saada.  We  must  reach  that  place  by  even- 
ing, or  camp  on  the  desert.** 

So  on  the  day  decided  upon  they  were  off  at  an  early  hour 
in  the  morning,  leaving  the  pretty  Marguerite  pensively 
watching.     She  shared  her  mistress's  misgivings. 

The  8un*s  rays  were  soft,  this  morning,  and  the  sky  mottled 
with  fleecy  clouds.  The  sea  was  of  a  steely  blue.  Down  the  car 

[101] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

rolled  by  walls  over  which  the  purple-red  masses  of  the  Bou- 
gainvillea  vine  climbed  in  rich  luxuriance.  Some  of  the  white 
villas  were  almost  smothered  in  it. 

*'  The  magenta,  paper-looking  bracts  of  that  vine  almost  Set 
my  teeth  on  edge  with  their  color,  yet  the  vine  is  so  tropical 
against  the  dark  branches  of  the  cypress  trees,  and  the  glis- 
tening white  of  those  villas,'*  said  the  Other-one. 

They  soon  got  down  to  the  noisy  Rue  du  Lyon,  where,  even 
at  that  early  hour,  the  cars  were  jangling  along,  and  Arab 
men  and  women  sat  contentedly  in  the  open  car, — the  helle 
jardiniere,  as  they  call  this  car  in  Algiers.  Great  truck 
wagons  got  in  the  way  of  the  automobile  and  it  was  obliged 
to  halt  several  times.  Much  cracking  of  whips  and  hoarse 
shouting,  by  the  French  and  Maltese  drivers,  got  the  poor, 
jaded-looking  horses  to  one  side,  so  that  the  car  could  pass. 
Then  a  tram  car  came  in  its  way  and  caused  another  stop. 
Along  here  it  is  ugly,  with  dirty  shops  and  vile  little  cafes. 
At  Maison  Carree  the  car  turned  south.  This  is  an  outlying 
town,  twelve  kilometres  from  Algiers  and  much  visited  by 
strangers,  to  see  the  large  early  market  on  Fridays.  It  takes 
its  name  from  a  Turkish  fort,  now  used  as  a  native  peniten- 
tiary and  depot  for  prisoners  waiting  to  be  deported.  Be- 
yond, the  car  came  on  to  the  great  plain  of  the  Mitidja, 
watered  by  the  Oued  Harrach  and  its  tributary,  the  Oued 
Djemaa.  They  passed  enormous  vineyards,  stretching  to  the 
foothills  of  the  Atlas,  no  green  leaves  showing  as  yet;  but 
there  was  no  lack  of  color,  for  the  barley  and  wheat  fields 
were  of  a  pale  rich  green,  silvery  waves  sweeping  across  them 
when  the  puffs  of  wind  came,  now  and  then.  There  were 
flocks  of  sheep  and  goats,  and  sometimes  meagre  cows,  feed- 
ing by  the  wayside,  guarded  by  ancient,  grizzled  shepherds 
well  wrapped  in  their  ragged  burnouses  and  ha^iks  from  the 
morning  freshness.  Sometimes  small  girls  cared  for  the  flocks 
and  gave  a  bright  bit  of  color  to  the  landscape,  with  their  gay 
red  gowns  and  the  vivid  handkerchiefs  bound  round  their 
heads.  They  stared  with  open  mouths  at  the  passing  car,  or 
gave  a  jump  and  screamed  with  delight.    The  Other-one  half 

[102] 


OFF    TO   EOU-SAADA 

expected  to  see  Rebecca  drawing  water  at  one  of  the  many 
wells  they  passed,  and  Jacob,  wrapped  in  his  mantle,  leaning 
on  a  staff  and  watching  her.  How  lovely  was  the  view  of  the 
plain,  stretching  its  mosaic  of  green  tones  to  the  far  misty 
blues  of  the  mountain. 

As  they  drew  nearer,  the  foothills  began  to  show  streaks  of 
green  on  their  flanks.  In  the  sky,  the  small,  fleecy  clouds  had 
floated  together  and  had  a  windy  look.  The  car  passed  huge 
wagons,  heaped  with  wine  barrels.  On  the  collars  of  the 
horses  were  high,  pointed  frameworks,  decorated  with  small 
bells  which  tinkled  musically  as  the  horses  walked.  Now  the 
car  came  to  a  long  avenue  of  sycamore-trees,  not  much  in  leaf 
yet;  but  in  the  full  foliage  time  what  grateful  shade  they 
must  afford  to  the  weary  men  and  beasts  going  under  them ! 
Where  the  plains  were  uncultivated,  wild  flowers  of  every 
hue  spread  a  gay  rug;  there  was  the  green  of  the  wild 
mignonette,  the  deep  purple  and  pale  mauves  of  the  wild 
verbena,  the  glowing  orange  of  the  coreopsis,  the  lemon  yel- 
low of  the  chamomile,  with  scarlet  poppies  thrusting  them- 
selves, here  and  there,  into  the  scheme  of  color. 

At  thirty  kilometres  from  Algiers,  our  party  passed 
through  the  little  town  of  Arba  near  the  Oued  Djemaa,  which 
here  waters  the  orange  groves  and  turns  the  mills.  The  little 
houses  here  were  white,  and  there  were  cafes  as  always, 
where  the  Arabs  sat  huddled  together  outside  and  stared  into 
vacancy  as  they  took  their  early  cups  of  coffee.  The  scent  of 
the  orange  groves  filled  the  morning  air,  and  beyond  the 
town  were  groves  of  olive  trees  with  their  gray-green  foliage. 

Along  here  the  road  was  not  so  good  as  it  had  been,  and  in 
places  it  was  rough.  Now  the  car  began  the  ascent  of  the 
foothills  that  roll  up  in  waves  to  the  Lesser  Atlas  Mountains. 
Here  the  air  seemed  even  more  fresh  and  pure  than  ever,  but 
now  and  then  came  great  puffs  of  wind  that  smote  the  party 
in  their  faces,  and  raised,  around  and  before,  great  clouds  of 
dust.  They  passed  fascinating  groups;  sometimes  a  cluster 
of  women  huddled  together  by  the  roadside,  the  bright  blues 
and  reds  of  their  costumes  effective  against  the  emerald  hills, 

[103] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

though  the  car  passed  so  rapidly  that  sometimes  they  were  a 
blur  of  color.  Around  and  before  were  the  blue-greens  of  the 
cultivated  hills;  behind  was  the  vast  plain  stretching  off  to 
the  blue  of  the  distance.  Still  up,  and  rounding  a  curve  they 
came  to  a  hillside  covered  with  wild  olive-trees,  on  the  other 
side  a  forest  of  the  dark,  glossy  green  live-oak  {Quercus  ilex). 
Again,  the  road  curved  abruptly  and  the  car  ran  into  great 
gorges,  and  along  the  edge  of  deep  ravines,  which  opened  be- 
low. The  Commander  had  by  his  side  his  own  special  horn, 
and  in  such  places,  and  rounding  curves,  he  loved  to  send 
forth  its  rich  sonorous  tones  and  hear  the  answering  echoes. 
Now  they  came  round  a  sharp  curve,  and  the  deep  sound  of 
the  horn  rolled  out.  Just  beyond  the  curve,  the  car  came 
upon  a  small  shepherd  boy,  in  a  coarse  brown  shirt  and  much 
bundled  up  as  to  head.  His  small  flock  of  black  goats  and 
kids  were  standing  on  some  rocks  by  the  roadside.  The  little 
Arab  gave  a  startled  yell  and  leaped  with  his  flock  down  the 
precipice  beyond.  The  Other-one  screamed  in  alarm.  Adrian 
slowed  the  car  and  they  looked  back  to  see  the  little  shepherd 
standing  safe  on  a  projecting  rock,  while  the  goats  and  kids 
clung  like  flies  to  the  steep  sides. 

The  car  began  to  climb,  now,  a  road  that  apparently  could 
end  only  in  the  sky.  The  chauffeur  was  not  using  all  the 
power,  however,  but  soon  the  radiator  began  to  steam. 

At  intervals  along  the  road  there  were  pipes,  from  which 
flowed  pellucid  mountain  streams  into  cement  basins.  **  How 
much  we  see  that  the  French  have  done  everywhere !  ' '  re- 
marked the  Commander,  as  they  drew  up  by  one  of  the 
troughs  of  water,  and  the  chauffeur  descended  with  his  rub- 
ber bag  to  fill  up  the  radiator. 

'  *  How  good  it  is  to  see  these  watering  places  for  the  poor 
plodding  donkeys,  the  weary  horses,  the  tired  flocks,  toiling 
up  these  steep  mountain  roads,  not  to  say  anything  of  the 
animal,  man.  You  may  be  sure  the  Arabs  would  never  have 
done  this  work." 

Leaning  against  the  rock,  at  one  side,  with  Jiis  ragged,  yel- 
low-white burnous  —  which  he  wore  like  a  royal  mantle  — 

[104] 


OFF    TO   BOU-SAADA 

was  a  native.  He  looked  at  the  car  and  inmates  with  the  air 
of  a  potentate  who  has  nothing  to  fear,  and  sees  nothing  that 
he  has  not  viewed  before. 

* '  He  has  the  air  of  a  prince,  in  spite  of  his  bare  brown  legs 
and  feet,**  said  the  Other-one.  **  What  richness  of  color  in 
his  bronze  skin,  and  what  depths  in  his  dark  eyes!  He  must 
be  descended  from  a  Berber  king;  but  all  these  natives  look 
like  royal  princes,  compared  to  the  common  Jews,  the  ugly 
Italians,  and  the  skinny  French  colonists  we  see.** 

The  car  had  reached  the  summit  of  the  road,  apparently,  at 
last.  Great  mountain  peaks  thrust  themselves  up,  near  and 
afar;  bold  spurs  ran  out  from  the  nearer  mountains,  deep 
chasms  opened  below.  All  was  wilder  and  grander  than  any- 
thing yet  seen.  Patches  of  vivid  green  showed  here  and 
there  on  the  flanks  of  the  mountains,  interspersed  with  masses 
of  lentisque  bushes,  all  which  but  served  to  accentuate  the 
wildness. 

As  they  went  on,  they  saw  little  hamlets  on  the  spurs, 
seemingly  on  the  point  of  slipping  down  into  the  chasms  be- 
low; afar  were  other  little  clusters  of  houses  nearly  hidden 
under  some  beetling  crag.  The  grandeur,  the  wildness,  the 
silence,  the  remoteness  from  human  life,  awed  the  travellers. 
The  wind  now  began  to  buffet  them  more  fiercely.  On  they 
went,  passing  great  slopes  of  shale,  and  tortured,  twisted  rock 
that  ran  up  the  mountain  sides.  The  road,  always  hard  and 
good,  began  to  ascend  again  to  heights  where  only  bunch 
grass  grew  in  the  clefts  of  rocks  or  on  the  level  spots  where  a 
handful  of  soil  might  be.  The  stiff  spears  rustled  in  the 
gusts  of  wind.  Then  the  car  bowled  down  again  to  hollows 
where  the  wild  oleander, — the  laurel  of  the  ancient  Romans 
—  and  the  iris  flourished.  Now  and  then  they  passed  small 
huts  made  of  straw,  branches,  and  wild  grasses. 

**  Those  must  be  for  the  natives  who  cultivate  the  slopes  of 
the  mountains,  or  pasture  their  flocks  on  the  inclines  here," 
said  the  Commander. 

The  motor  now  began  to  show  signs  of  being  in  trouble. 
The  chauffeur  leaped  out  to  investigate.     No  sound  but  the 

[  105  ] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

wind  sobbing,  the  rustle  of  the  bushes  shaken  by  it,  and  the 
call  of  a  vulture  in  the  sky.  When  the  engine  started  again, 
its  gurgling  was  welcome  and  seemed  human,  so  oppressive 
had  the  silence  been.  They  arrived  at  Sakomody,  a  meagre 
little  hamlet,  forty-nine  kilometres  from  Algiers.  Hills  rose 
everywhere,  thrusting  out  long  spurs,  with  deep  gashes  of 
ravines  between.  On  the  hills  to  the  left  were  openings  into 
zinc  mines.  Some  kilometres  farther  on,  or  about  fifty-eight, 
they  at  last  reached  the  summit  of  the  mountains.  The  view 
was  magnificent. 

' '  We  seem  to  be  a  thousand  miles  away  from  any  human 
being !  ' '  cried  the  Other-one. 

The  car  went  on  again.  Absorbed  in  the  grand  views,  the 
Commander  had  forgotten  his  horn.  Rounding  a  sharp  curve, 
they  almost  ran  down  an  Arab  leading  three  white  horses, 
lean  to  meagreness.  Surprised  into  some  life,  the  poor  crea- 
tures leaped  into  the  air,  tugging  wildly  at  the  rope  the  man 
held.  The  startled  mountaineer,  with  his  burnous  blown 
over  his  head,  pulled  in  vain  to  stop  his  frightened  animals, 
which  were  about  to  gallop  off  down  the  road,  when  the  kind 
Commander  leaped  from  the  car  and  ran,  with  Adrian  at  his 
heels,  to  help  the  frightened  man.  Off  again,  after  the 
startled  creatures  had  been  calmed.  At  sixty-eight  kilometres 
they  reached  Tablat,  a  tiny  town  with  fortified  walls,  and  a 
tower  at  one  corner  with  loop  holes. 

*'  What  terrible  times  the  poor  colonists  must  have  had 
here,  to  protect  themselves  from  the  assaults  of  the  fierce 
mountain  tribes,*'  said  the  Commander  thoughtfully,  as  the 
car  rolled  through  the  town.  **  These  walls  show  for  defence 
and  lookout.  Now  everything  seems  quiet,  but  who  knows 
how  long  it  will  last,  or  what  may  happen  in  the  future  ?  ' ' 

They  passed  a  group  of  natives;  some  were  squatted  on 
the  ground  and  they  seemed  to  have  only  a  languid  interest 
in  the  car.  One  or  two  fine  old  men  were  on  beautiful  white 
Arabian  horses,  with  the  queer,  high-backed,  chair-like 
saddle.  Others  were  paddling  along  on  discouraged-looking 
donkeys,  which  had  the  appearance  of  moth-eaten  furs. 

[  106  ] 


OFF    TO   BOU-SAADA 

Out  of  the  town  and  downward,  to  cross  a  bridge  over  the 
Oued  el-Had,  a  mere  yellow  thread  in  its  wide  stony  bed, 
swelled,  when  the  mountain  snows  melt,  to  a  rushing  torrent. 
Again  the  car  sped  away,  and  passed  a  symphony  in  color  on 
a  steep  hillside,  of  yellow-brown  soil,  and  men  in  dirty  yellow 
burnouses,  ploughing  with  dirty  yellow  oxen. 

**  What  primitive  methods!**  exclaimed  the  Commander. 
*'  A  crooked  stick,  with  a  longer  stick  for  a  handle,  just  as  they 
have  ploughed  since  the  world  began !  This  thing  can  only 
scratch  the  earth,  but  perhaps  it  is  good  enough  for  this  soil. 
What  would  these  men  think  of  our  steam  ploughs!  ** 

Another  river  was  now  crossed,  the  Oued  Samma,  quite  a 
wide  stream.  The  great  mountains  loomed  always  into  the 
sky.  Now  came  a  group  of  brown  women,  with  gay  red  and 
yellow  kerchiefs  bound  around  their  heads. 

**What  color  we  see  here!*'  cried  the  Other-one,  enthu- 
siastically. **  If  I  were  an  artist,  I  could  never  rest  until  I 
had  it  on  canvas;  alas!  my  photographs  can  give  only  the 
black  and  white!  Look  there  is  the  peacock  blue  of  the 
sea,  the  emerald  green  of  the  grain  fields,  the  silver  white  of 
the  snow  peaks  afar,  the  purple  and  evanescent  blue  of  the 
mountains,  deep  green  of  the  pine  forests,  the  vivid  yellows 
and  reds  of  the  soil,  the  creamy  white  and  soft  browns  of  the 
native  dress.  Wliat  a  palette  it  would  need !  What  a  fasci- 
nating land!  —  and  as  yet  we  have  not  seen  the  best.** 

Up  again  they  mounted  to  a  plateau  above  the  muddy  river 
flowing  sullenly  along  in  its  rocky  bed.  Groups  of  natives 
stalked  along  the  road.  They  looked  fiercely  at  the  car. 
Adrian  slowed  up  as  they  came  to  a  horse  with  two  persons 
on  its  back,  and  all  looked  intently  at  the  pair,  a  pretty 
young  woman  clinging  tightly  to  the  back  of  a  handsome 
young  fellow,  his  burnous  flying  in  the  air  with  the  leaps  of 
the  animal,  which  was  a  little  frightened  at  the  strange  vehi- 
cle. The  woman  had  a  yellow  kerchief  wound  over  her  head 
above  her  soft  black  eyes.  Her  skin  was  a  mellow  bronze.  A 
wide  silver  necklace  hung  down  over  her  dark  blue  gown,  and 
bracelets  covered  her  rounded  arms.     Big  fibulae  caught  the 

[107] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

dress  at  the  shoulders,  and  the  brown  shapely  legs  hanging 
down  had  wide  anklets  on  them. 

**  They  must  be  bride  and  groom,  newly  wedded.  They 
seem  so  happy  and  are  so  attractive, ' '  cried  the  Other-one. 

The  Commander's  eye  caught  the  gleam  of  the  silver 
jewellery.  Both  he  and  the  Other-one  jumped  from  the  car, 
she  with  her  camera,  he  with  some  silver  pieces  in  his  hand. 
As  she  pointed  the  kodak  at  the  fascinating  pair,  the  young 
native  gave  a  wild  shout,  and  urging  up  the  horse,  he  broke 
into  a  fast  gallop,  looking  back  with  a  laugh,  as  with  flying 
draperies  all  disappeared  over  the  hill.  Our  discomfited 
couple  climbed  into  the  car,  the  Commander  sighing. 

*  *  Oh,  I  wish  I  could  have  secured  that  necklace !  It 's  a 
beauty !    I  shall  never  find  another  like  it !  '  * 

* '  Troubles  do  not  come  singly, ' '  however,  and  the  car  soon 
rolled  up  to  another  group.  Trailing  along  in  the  dust  were 
two  women,  one  young  and  very  pretty,  the  other  old  and 
ugly.  The  Commander  saw  the  glisten  of  a  necklace  on  the 
young  woman,  and  almost  before  Adrian  could  turn  off  the 
power,  he  leaped  from  the  car,  stopped  the  natives  with  an 
imperative  gesture,  and  examined  the  necklace  closely.  The 
young  woman  did  not  seem  to  mind  this  tribute  to  her 
jewellery,  but  tossed  her  head  coquettishly. 

**  It 's  a  beauty!  '*  called  back  the  Commander.  *'  Of  fine 
chains  of  coral,  and  etched  plaques  of  silver.  I  must  have 
it!'' 

He  drew  from  his  pocket  five  of  the  large,  silver,  five-franc 
pieces,  and  pointing  to  the  necklace,  held  the  money  up.  The 
girl  smiled,  nodded  her  head,  and  was  about  to  pull  off  the 
necklace,  when  suddenly,  as  if  sprung  from  the  earth,  a  grim- 
visaged  man,  brown  as  a  chestnut,  appeared.  He  seized  the 
young  woman  brutally  by  the  arm,  muttered  some  hoarse 
phrase  to  her,  and  stalked  on,  dragging  her  after  him,  while 
the  ugly  one  trailed  wearily  behind.  Again  the  disconsolate 
Commander  got  into  the  car,  raurmuring :  *  *  Too  bad !  too 
bad!    It  is  one  of  the  choicest  necklaces  I  have  ever  seen!  '* 

A  hundred  and  twenty-five  kilometres  from  Algiers,  they 

[108] 


AVENUE   OF   EUCALYPTUS, 
ON  THE  ROAD  TO  BOU-SAADA 


j^-li^Mi 


THE  MARKET-PLACE  AT  BOU-SAADA 


AN  AKAB  SHEPHERD  AND  HIS  FLOCK,  ON  THE  ROAD 


A  FIELD  OF  ASPHODEL 


OFF    TO    BOU-SAADA 

reached  Aumale  and  looked  hungrily  for  the  hotel, 
which,  they  had  been  told,  was  the  *'  least  undesirable.'* 
They  found  it,  with  a  little  garden  surrounded  by  a  fence 
and  containing  a  few  sickly  lemon-trees  and  the  inevitable 
palm;  small  tables  were  spread  here,  but  everything  was  so 
dusty  that  the  party  preferred  to  go  into  the  small  salle-d- 
manger,  which  was  hung  with  gaudy  posters.  Here  a  poor, 
over-worked  waiter  was  trying  to  serve  ten  or  twelve  clamor- 
ous soldiers  and  civilians  at  once.  After  waiting  half  an 
hour,  during  which  the  Commander  chafed  with  impatience, 
they  were  served  with  an  omelete  aux  fines  herbes,  half 
cooked,  some  salad  with  a  suspicion  of  oil,  and  the  usual 
withered  oranges  and  dusty  dried  dates. 

**  To  think!  ''  exclaimed  the  Other-one.  **  With  their  six 
and  a  half  million  gallons  of  olive  oil  a  year,  they  can 
spare  us  only  a  few  drops  for  our  salad !  *  * 

The  Two  went  out,  and  when  Adrian  had  rescued  the  car 
from  the  pack  of  Arabs  surrounding  it  and  opened  a  passage 
through  to  it,  they  were  off  into  a  dreary  and  rather  barren 
country,  the  edge  of  the  desert ;  the  road,  however,  was  gen- 
erally hard  and  excellent.  The  trees  became  fewer  and 
fewer,  and  the  sand  more  and  more.  After  some  time  they 
saw  across  the  gray  and  yellow  plain  the  green  oasis  of  Bou 
Saada,  against  a  pale,  windy  sky.  The  car  rolled  smoothly 
over  the  sandy  road,  and  it  was  late  when  they  arrived  at  the 
walled  town  of  Bou  Saada  passed  under  the  gate,  and 
plunged  at  once  into  a  howling  mob  of  Ouled  Nails  —  men, 
not  the  dancing  girls.  Adrian  pushed  carefully  through  it 
and  by  a  square,  with  trees,  dark  against  the  little  light  that 
remained.  The  Hotel  du  Saada  was  to  shelter  them  for  the 
night.  Weary  enough  they  all  were,  with  the  long  day  of 
travel,  constantly  on  the  qiii  vive  to  see  all  the  fascinating 
things,  and  with  the  buffeting  of  the  wind  and  the  meagre 
lunch  at  noon.  Yet  they  would  not  have  exchanged  the 
charm  and  interest  of  the  day,  for  a  ride  in  the  finest  Pull- 
man car,  through  a  settled  country,  and  a  lunch  at  the  most 
luxurious  of  hotels. 

[109] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

Clamorous  boys  now  surrounded  the  car  and  endeavored  to 
drag  off  the  baggage,  to  carry  it  into  the  hotel  which  was  sep- 
arated from  the  street  by  an  iron  fence.  A  tall,  black-browed 
native,  clad  in  a  dirty  white  jacket  and  white,  baggy  trousers, 
constituted  himself  guardian  of  the  strangers,  and  cuffed  and 
knocked  around  the  dirty  gamins  until  they  fled  howling  in 
derision.  He  led  the  couple  into  the  hotel,  leaving  two  dirty 
dependents  of  it  to  bring  in  the  valises,  rugs,  and  trunks. 
The  Other-one's  heart  sank  within  her  as  she  followed  the 
black-browed  boy  into  a  dirty  hall  across  a  small,  ill-smelling 
court,  and  into  a  narrow  corridor  lighted  only  with  a  dingy 
hanging  lamp  that  gave  out  a  strong  odor  of  kerosene;  then 
into  a  small  room,  where,  fortunately,  she  could  not  see, 
though  she  felt,  the  dirty  state*  The  boy  hastily  lighted  a 
tallow  candle,  and  by  its  feeble  flicker  she  noted  the  two  iron 
beds,  a  rickety  chair  or  two,  and  a  stand  with  a  wash  basin, 
water  jug,  and  two  very  small  and  thin  towels.  The  Com- 
mander soon  after  came  in  briskly,  and  looked  at  the  Other- 
one,  who  had  sunk  despondent  into  one  of  the  chairs. 
''Aren't  you  going  to  get  ready  for  dinner?"  he  asked, 
laughing.  * '  You  look  rather  doleful.  Do  put  on  your  best 
'  bib  and  tucker. '  Think !  What  a  glorious  day  we  have  had ! 
Such  roads,  such  grand  scenery,  such  air  and  color,  and  those 
fascinating  people !  ' ' 

'  *  Ye  —  yes !  but  it  is  so  dirty  here.  It 's  no  use  to  go  to 
the  table, —  I  know  I  can 't  eat  their  filthy  food !  ' ' 

*  *  Nonsense !  brace  up  and  take  the  bitter  with  the  sweet ! 
I  thought  you  were  such  a  good  traveller,  and  always  accepted 
whatever  came.    Has  n  't  that  been  your  boast  ?  " 

' '  Yes,  but  you  well  know  I  can  endure  any  hardship  in 
travelling  but  dirt,  and  there  are  three  kinds, —  clean  dirt, 
nasty  dirt,  and  filthy  dirt.  I  can  support  the  former,  but  the 
last  two  sear  my  soul!  " 

* '  Well !  to  which  class  does  this  belong  ?  ' '  asked  the 
Commander. 

'*  Did  you  see  the  courtyard  and  hall  we  went  through?" 
was  all  the  answer  the  Lady  vouchsafed. 

r  110  1 


OFF    TO   BOU-SAADA 

By  the  light  of  the  tallow  dip,  they  made  what  toilet  they 
could,  washing  the  sand  from  their  faces  and  brushing  it  from 
their  clothes,  and  then,  somewhat  refreshed,  they  traversed  the 
long  hall  and  courtyard  to  the  dining-room,  indicated  by  a 
frowzy  French  woman,  who  had  the  air  of  being  the  proprie- 
tress. A  room,  small  for  the  company  in  it,  hung,  as  usual, 
with  gay  French  posters ;  on  a  shelf  some  dusty,  red,  artificial 
flowers  in  cheap  vases,  with  a  grimy  mirror.  There  were  four 
or  five  tables,  at  the  smallest  of  which,  laid  for  two,  the  Com- 
mander and  his  wife  sat  down.  At  the  two  tables  nearest 
were  some  French  parties  who  had  evidently  come  down  to 
Bou  Saada  for  a  **  lark,'*  and  made  much  talk  and  chatter 
in  high-pitched  voices.  At  the  other  tables  sat  some  soldiers, 
drinking  wine  and  staring  at  the  French  women,  who  were 
gotten  up  with  much  false  hair,  rouge,  and  highly  colored 
gowns.  All  banged  on  the  tables  at  intervals  for  the  poor 
Arab  boy,  who  was  the  sole  waiter  and,  in  a  white  coat  and 
decent  red  fez,  seemed  the  cleanest  thing  in  the  hotel.  He 
flew  around,  breathing  heavily,  but  managed  to  get  the  more 
clamorous  ones  served,  leaving  our  quiet  couple  until  the  last. 
They  ate,  with  some  appetite,  after  all,  the  greasy  soup,  the 
tough  mutton,  the  salad  floating  in  oil,  and  a  nondescript 
pudding,  consoling  themselves  for  whatever  was  lacking,  with 
the  wine,  which  was  excellent. 

In  spite  of  all  drawbacks,  some  yells  of  the  untiring  boys, 
and  the  howls  of  dogs  until  midnight,  our  motorists  soon  fell 
asleep  on  their  iron  beds,  and  slept  profoundly,  as  do  those 
who  pass  the  entire*  day  in  the  open  air. 

When  the  Other-one  looked  out  the  next  moriiiii^%  the  sun 
was  shining  brilliantly.  She  felt  refreshed  and  invigorated. 
By  daylight  everything  seemed  more  hopeful  as  regarded  the 
dirt.  She  was  ready  to  sally  forth  and  see  the  sights  in  the 
hour  and  a  half  that  the  Commander  allowed,  **  for  we  must 
get  back  to  Algiers  to-night.  There  is  no  stopping-place  on 
the  way !  * ' 

The  lanky,  black-browed  youth  who  had  taken  care  of  them 
when  they  arrived,  upon  being  asked  to  hunt  them  up  a  guide 

[111] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

for  the  town,  languidly  offered  his  services.  As  he  spoke 
French  that  the  Other-one  could  understand  with  strict  atten- 
tion, and  as  he  seemed  intelligent  enough,  they  set  forth  under 
his  guidance.  He  wore  his  red  fez  rakishly  on  one  side  of  his 
head  and  had  a  scarlet  wool  sash  around  his  white  coat.  He 
sauntered  languidly  along,  carrying  the  camera  with  an  air 
of  fatigue.  In  other  countries  he  would  have  posed  as  a  dude. 
He  could,  however,  strike  out  with  good  fists,  as  they  had 
noted  the  night  before ;  so  the  Other-one  felt  that  in  any  diffi- 
culty she  might  rely  upon  his  strength. 

**  Madame  will  see  the  river  first.  Everybody  goes  there. 
It  is  beautiful !'' 

They  left  the  village  at  one  side,  and  plunged  down  a  path 
leading  to  the  small  stream  flowing  along  in  its  sandy  and 
pebbly  bed.  The  banks  rose  high  on  each  side,  fringed  at 
the  top  with  palm,  fig,  live-oak,  and  pepper  trees,  while  the 
steep  incline  was  a  mass  of  bushes  and  tropical  foliage.  It 
was  in  effect  beautiful,  looking  down  the  stream,  with  the 
dark  green  of  the  palms,  the  soft  pale  color  of  the  early  leaves 
of  the  fig,  mixed  with  the  pink  and  white  blossoms  of  the  fruit 
trees,  and  through  them  the  mud-plastered  houses  showing 
here  and  there. 

There  were  interesting  objects  to  see  down  by  the  stream. 
A  fine,  bronzed  soldier  in  blue  coat,  red  sash  and  trousers, 
led  his  white  Arabian  horse  to  water  in  the  little  stream.  Far- 
ther on,  a  gray  old  man,  wrapped  in  his  cream-white  burnous, 
squatting  down  on  some  rocks,  regarded  the  tourists  curi- 
ously and  somewhat  savagely,  from  under  his  grizzled,  over- 
hanging eyebrows.  It  was  deliciously  quiet  here,  with  only 
the  gurgling  water  and  the  breeze  rustling  the  trees,  but 
suddenly  the  tranquillity  was  invaded.  Some  gamins  had 
scented  the  party  afar  and  they  now  appeared  on  the  banks 
above,  howling  for  sous  and  about  to  descend,  but  deterred 
by  the  gutturals  and  ferocious  scowls  of  the  guide,  who 
dropped  at  once  the  character  of  the  languid  dude  and  as- 
sumed that  of  the  fierce  and  watchful  warrior. 

They  now  climbed  a  rocky  path  and  came  out  on  the  road 

[  112  ] 


OFF    TO    BOU-SAADA 

leading  to  the  town.  Passing  a  low  hut,  they  saw,  sitting  on 
the  flat  roof,  the  picturesque  figure  of  a  girl ;  a  gay  red  and 
yellow  bandage  around  her  head,  wide  braids  of  hair  framing 
her  face,  and  many  trinkets  of  jewellery  disposed  on  her  per- 
son. She  watched  the  party  with  languid  interest,  but  when 
the  kodak  was  pointed  at  her,  she  giggled  loudly  and  turned 
her  back.  The  guide  expostulated  with  her,  and  finally  when 
a  coin  was  handed  up  to  her,  she  sat  still  for  a  moment. 

"That  is  an  Ouled  Nail  dancing-girl,**  said  the  guide. 
**  There  are  many  dancing-girls  here,  and  I  shall  take 
Madame  to  one  of  their  houses.** 

**  Can  we  buy  some  of  their  jewellery?  **  asked  the  Com- 
mander eagerly. 

The  guide  was  quite  sure  much  could  be  bought  if  one  paid 
well  for  it. 

**  They  say,**  said  the  Other-one,  **  that  these  Ouled  Nails 
have  many  flocks,  and  that  the  women  weave  tissues  from  the 
wool,  very  skilfully.  I  can  think  of  them  only  as  dancing- 
girls,  however.     Look!  there  comes  one  —  a  curious  figure.'* 

There  appeared,  coming  toward  them  down  the  narrow 
street  between  the  whitewashed,  mud-plastered  houses  on 
either  side,  a  woman,  walking  very  slowly,  with  a  haughty 
air,  as  one  of  much  consequence.  She  was  very  dark,  and  her 
face  was  tattooed  and  daubed  with  red  and  yellow;  great 
false  loops  of  hair  fell  around  her  weird  face.  She  wore  a 
red  dress  and  over  it  a  sort  of  white  mantle  drawn  up  over 
her  head,  and  the  usual  quantity  of  bracelets,  anklets,  neck- 
laces, and  fibula?.  Moreover  she  had  great  hoops  of  silver,  as 
big  as  the  rim  of  a  coffee  cup,  in  her  ears.  The  Other-one 
snapped  her  up  quickly.  The  women  stopped  still  and  held 
out  her  hand. 

**  Madame  must  give  her  money  for  her  picture,**  said  the 
guide,  **but  Madame  will  see  many  dancing-girls  and  still 
more  beautiful  than  this  one  who  is  now  old!  ** 

**We  ought  to  find  some  jewellery  in  these  houses,**  ob- 
served the  Commander.  **  I  must  find  some  treasures  here 
for  the  museum.** 

[113] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

The  guide  hurried  them  down  a  still  narrower  street,  past 
men  and  women  in  gay  colors,  squatting  down  by  the  open 
doors  of  their  houses,  through  which  one  could  only  look  in 
to  a  black  hole.  When  they  saw  our  party  they  all  fled  into 
the  houses  and  slammed  the  doors.  The  guide  stopped  at  a 
long,  low,  whitewashed  house  and  led  them  into  a  courtyard 
with  many  doors  opening  out  of  it  into  rooms,  and  a  balcony 
around  the  low  second-story,  this  also  having  many  doors 
opening  into  it.  A  staircase  ran  up  to  the  balcony  near  the 
door  by  which  they  entered,  and  on  the  lower  steps,  lolled  a 
luxuriant  beauty  —  as  Ouled  Nail  beauties  go  —  painted, 
bedecked  with  jewellery,  and  wearing  a  pink  and  white  striped 
gauze  gown,  from  under  which  her  brown  feet,  and  her  ankles, 
with  broad  silver  bands  on  them,  showed.  She  ogled  the 
guide,  but  he  passed  on  unheeding.  Some  dirty  men  lounged 
near,  and  one  fine  specimen,  with  the  blackest  of  whiskers 
and  a  beautifully  embroidered  coat,  over  which  was  thrown  a 
pale  blue  burnous,  stared  so  savagely  at  the  party  that  the 
Other-one  felt  a  cold  chill  run  down  her  back.  In  a  corner 
of  the  room  the  guide  opened  a  door,  without  the  ceremony 
of  knocking  and  ushered  them  into  a  small  room  with  a  huge 
bed  at  the  farther  end,  with  curtains  and  coverlet  of  gay 
Oriental  embroidery,  in  gold  thread  and  silks.  Showy  rugs 
decorated  the  floor,  and  cheap  ornaments  hung  on  the  wall, 
together  with  a  lot  of  photographs,  some  stuck  in  a  big  frame. 
The  greatest  ornament  in  the  room,  to  the  guide 's  eyes,  appar- 
ently,—  and  he  had  now  assumed  his  languid,  dudish  air, — 
was  a  not  too  young  Ouled  Nail,  in  a  green,  gold-spangled 
dress,  her  broad  waist  bound  with  a  wide  golden  belt,  and  a 
spangled  gauze  and  silk  kerchief  around  her  head,  from  which 
gold  bangles  tinkled  over  her  forehead.  A  glittering  neck- 
lace of  gold  coins  hung  around  her  neck,  and  the  braids 
around  her  face  and  the  silver  hoops  in  her  ears  were  of  enor- 
mous size.  An  old,  wrinkled  crone  stood  by  her, —  an  ex- 
dancing  girl,  probably,  who  evidently  could  not  give  up  her 
habit  of  painting  and  wearing  jewellery.  She  leered  at  the 
guide,  shaking  her  head  with  pleasure  at  seeing  him,  until 

[114] 


OFF    TO    BOU-SAADA 

the  bangles,  on  her  head  and  withered  neck  clinked.  There 
seemed  to  be  no  dismay  that  the  party  had  been  so  uncere- 
moniously ushered  into  the  room.  The  younger  dancing-girl 
advanced  to  the  Other-one,  caught  hold  of  her  hand  and  tried 
to  raise  it  to  her  lips;  but  the  lady  pulled  it  sharply  away. 
Then  the  Ouled  Nail,  with  a  complacent  smile,  seized  the 
Commander's  hand  and  imprinted  on  it  a  loud  kiss. 

*  *  How  can  you  allow  that  ?  '  *  cried  the  Other-one,  in 
disgust. 

**  I  want  to  keep  the  peace,**  returned  the  Commander. 
**  I  see  the  chance  of  securing  some  very  fine  things  here.  I 
must  surely  buy  some.  Tell  the  guide  to  have  her  bring  out  all 
the  rest  of  the  jewellery  she  has  —  though  she  has  enough 
on  her  now  to  stock  a  small  shop.*' 

After  parleying  with  the  guide  a  few  moments,  the  old  hag 
produced  from  a  box  under  the  bed,  treasures  of  cunningly 
wrought  amulets  of  gold  and  silver,  necklaces  of  turquoise 
and  coral  with  golden  links,  necklaces  of  gold  coins,  bracelets 
of  gold  and  silver  of  fine  workmanship,  and,  with  a  great  show 
of  pride,  a  wide  golden  band  like  a  crown,  for  the  head,  with- 
much  fine  etching  on  it.  The  beauty  stood  complacently  by 
and  eyed  her  gems  with  the  air  of  a  royal  princess.  The 
Commander  fell  upon  the  collection  with  avidity,  pushing 
aside  the  crown,  which  he  said  was  **  not  typical,*'  and 
])uttl!ip^  by  some  bracelets,  anklets,  and  a  fine  necklace  or  two 
of  silver.  Then  ensued  much  bargaining,  by  means  of  the 
guide,  who  evidently  helped  to  keep  prices  up  to  secure  his 
commission.  At  last  the  Commander  remained  with  three 
or  four  of  the  desired  articles  in  his  possession.  Then  the 
Other-one,  who  had  stood  wearily  by,  stepped  forward  and 
asked  for  the  privilege  of  a  "  snapshot  at  the  dancing-girl 
with  all  her  jewellery  hung  on  her.*'  This  was  granted  with 
a  condescending  air,  and  a  demand  for  a  good  price  for  the 
favor.  Then  the  lovely  one  decorated  herself  with  her  golden 
crown,  some  big  golden  earrings,  many  bracelets  and  other 
jewellery,  and  posed  against  the  whitewashed  walls  of  her 
house,  adjusting  her  hands,  with  their  henna-stained  nails, 

[115] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

before  her.  Some  of  the  men  sauntered  up  while  the  picture 
was  being  taken,  and  the  other  beauty  looked  disdainfully 
from  the  staircase.  However,  the  Other-one  caught  her  too, 
and  some  of  the  loungers,  while  pretending  to  take  a  small  dog 
near.  Whereupon  a  dirty  boy  snatched  up  the  dog  and  de- 
manded **  some  sous." 

Then  the  party  left  and  went  down  the  narrow  street,  with 
its  rough  stone  pavement  and  the  flat-roofed,  irregular  houses 
of  plastered  cobblestone,  with  a  few  holes  for  windows,  and 
poles  sticking  out  here  and  there, —  the  usual  style  of  the 
houses  of  native  villages.  They  came  to  the  entrance  of  a 
rude  mosque,  and  climbed  some  rickety  stairs  from  the  small 
court  to  the  roof,  where  they  looked  down  on  the  oasis  of 
green  palms  stretching  away  in  feathery  grace  to  the  wide 
desert  of  gray  sand.  Then  they  came  down  to  follow  another 
long,  narrow  street,  with  its  picturesque  groups  by  the  doors, 
with  donkeys  having  great  panniers  or  bestrode  by  sturdy 
Ouled  Nails,  pushing  the  party  against  the  walls.  Climbing 
up  at  one  side,  beyond  some  houses,  they  came  out  on  a  level 
space,  bare  of  dwellings,  where  was  a  curious  mosque-tomb 
with  a  queer,  elongated  sort  of  dome  and  four  small  ones  of  the 
same  style  at  the  four  corners, —  all  as  chalky  as  whitewash 
could  make  them.  Some  natives  lounged  against  the  wall  in 
the  shade,  for  it  was  hot,  and  the  white  Koubba,  against  the 
intense  blue  sky  and  the  palm-trees  back,  made  one  feel  that 
this  was  the  land  of  heat. 

*  *  Let  us  now  go  down  through  the  town,  have  a  look  at 
some  of  the  native  jeweller}^"  said  the  Commander. 

They  went  along  the  street  to  the  big  square,  which  is 
shaded  by  plane-trees  and  where  is  a  great  stone  fountain, 
Roman  in  its  design  and  looking  out  of  place  in  this  square. 
Here  was  a  fascinating  market,  in  full  swing.  The  place  was 
a  mass  of  white  burnouses, —  natives  squatting  on  the  ground 
with  piles  of  dried  fish,  fruit,  vegetables,  and  what  not,  spread 
before  them;  natives  around  them  shouting,  gesticulating, 
bargaining,  and  donkeys  standing  around,  with  panniers 
empty  or  full.    Once  in  a  while  there  came  out  through  the 

[  116  ] 


RETURN   TO    ALGIERS 

crowd,  two  or  three  splendid-looking,  dark,  full-bearded  men» 
walking  along  with  stately  steps,  their  fine  blue  or  light- 
gray  burnouses  flung  gracefully  over  their  shoulders. 

**  Who  are  those  men?  '*  asked  the  Other-one  of  the  guide. 

*  *  They  are  the  kaids  who  come  in  from  the  villages  near.  *  * 

The  tumult,  the  animation,  the  kaleidoscopic  changes  were 
fascinating,  and  the  lady  would  have  lingered  to  watch  this 
phase  of  Oriental  life;  but  when  the  Commander  found  that 
the  jewellery  of  Ouled  Nail  workmanship,  at  one  or  two  places 
in  the  square,  was  coarse  and  badly  made,  and  that  the  guide 
could  tell  them  of  no  other  dealers  where  it  could  be  bought, 
he  suggested  that  it  would  be  well  to  begin  the  return  journey. 

The  walls  of  Bou  Saada,  and  its  oases  of  green  palms,  were 
soon  left  far  behind,  and  there  was  nothing  but  the  gray 
sand, —  broken  here  with  the  gray-green  scrub  grass, — 
stretching  away  to  the  horizon.  Flocks  of  sheep,  here  and 
there,  feeding  on  the  grass,  scrambled  off  and  away  in  a  panic 
when  they  saw  the  strange  vehicle.  Farther  on,  a  new  and 
unaccustomed  sight  greeted  the  eyes  of  the  Motorists,  a  long 
line  of  camels  coming. 

**  What  funny  creatures,  and  how  disdainful  of  everything 
they  seem,  as  they  sway  along  on  their  great  pads  of  feet  I 
Could  anything  be  more  supercilious  than  they  are?  They 
think,  it  appears,  that  no  one  but  themselves  has  any  rights 
in  the  Desert,**  said  the  Other-one. 

Ragged  natives,  dark-brown  in  tint,  with  fiery  black  eyes, 
ran  by  the  side  of  the  camels,  or  rose  and  fell,  upon  their 
backs  like  billows.  A  great  shout  of  dismay  arose  when  these 
men  perceived  the  motor,  and  only  after  much  howling  and 
banging  with  heavy  sticks  on  their  flanks,  did  the  contemptu- 
ous camels  consent,  with  derisive  bubblings,  to  get  off  the  road 
and  let  the  car  go  by. 

Our  party  moved  on  now  more  quickly,  and  came  up  to  a 
couple  walking  before  them.  The  Commander,  ever  on  the 
alert,  caught  the  gleam  of  silver  on  the  woman,  and  he  was 
out  on  the  road  before  Adrian  had  time  to  stop  the  car  fully. 
The   woman  had  on   an   unusual   necklace   of  seven   large 

1117] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

plaques,  with  rich  pieces  of  coral  in  the  centre  of  each  plaque. 
The  Commander  held  up  two  silver  five  franc  pieces,  at  the 
same  time  pointing  to  the  necklace.  The  native,  who  owned 
the  woman,  necklace  and  all,  comprehended  and  shook  his 
head  sullenly.  The  Commander,  in  a  panic,  drew  out  two 
more  silver  pieces.  After  some  wards  between  them,  by  which 
it  seemed  the  woman  was  urging  the  man  to  accept  the  money, 
she  pulled  off  the  coveted  treasure,  took  the  silver  and  put  it 
in  the  man's  hand;  then  they  walked  on,  while  the  Com- 
mander, rejoicing,  leaped  into  the  car,  with  the  necklace 
clasped  tightly  in  his  hand. 

So  the  day  went  on.  They  saw  sometimes  the  tents  of 
brown-and- white  striped  camel 's-hair  cloth,  of  the  nomads, 
pitched  on  the  desert  sand,  with  small  flocks  near,  feeding  on 
the  scrub  grass;  and  little  green  patches  of  grain  —  where 
there  was  some  moisture  —  protected  from  them  by  heaped- 
up  branches  of  the  camel  thorn  bush  {Acacia  horrida)  making 
an  impassable  hedge.  These  nomads  eagerly  seize  every  moist 
place  in  the  desert  where  they  may  cultivate  a  little  grain. 

After  the  desert  grays  and  yellows  came  the  emerald  green 
of  the  cultivated  plains  and  the  far  blue  of  the  mountains,  as 
our  travellers  went  on.  Not  many  kilometres  from  a  town, 
whose  minarets  they  could  see  afar,  they  noted  before  them  a 
cloud  of  dust  on  the  road,  and  they  came  up  to  a  nondescript 
vehicle, —  half  stage-coach,  half  lumber  wagon.  It  was  abso- 
lutely packed  with  natives.  They  seemed  like  dirty  white 
moths,  sticking  on  to  every  part.  Wrapped  to  the  eyes  in 
his  burnous,  the  driver  pulled  at  his  bony  steeds  as  if  in  fear 
they  might  run  away,  when  he  saw  the  motor;  but  the  poor 
animals,  seemingly  glad  of  a  halt,  stopped  and  settled  back 
on  their  haunches,  with  a  weary  air  of  relief.  A  group  of 
natives  trudging  on  ahead  stood  still  and  cast  back  looks  of 
alarm. 

'*  I  can  tell  you  what  this  means,''  said  the  Commander. 
*  *  They  must  all  be  going  to  a  fair  in  the  village  ahead,  and  so 
a  large  number  of  them  hire  this  wagon,  pack  it  as  full  as  they 
can,  while  the  rest  walk  on  until  such  time  as  they  are  all 

[118] 


RETURN    TO    ALGIERS 

weary,  or  it  is  decided  it  is  their  turn ;  then  they  change  places 
with  those  riding,  and  so  get  to  the  fair  very  comfortably  and 
with  little  cost,  undoubtedly.  See!  ahead,  in  those  clouds  of 
dust,  are  sheep,  goats,  men  on  donkeys;  so  there  is  surely  a 
fair  to-morrow,  as  it  is  too  late  to-day/* 

In  fact,  Adrian  had  now  to  put  his  car  into  second  speed 
and  move  on  with  great  caution  as  they  came  nearer  the  town, 
and  the  crowds  of  men  and  animals  began  to  thicken.  Clouds 
of  dust  arose;  the  odors  were  far  from  agreeable,  and  it  was 
hot. 

As  the  chauffeur  pulled  up  a  moment  to  let  the  rider  of  a 
particularly  obstreperous  donkey  get  out  of  the  way,  a  tall, 
fine  fellow,  with  a  clean  white  hdik  bound  over  his  fez,  a  snow 
white  long  gown  with  sinewy  brown  legs  showing  below  it, 
and  a  decent  creamy  burnous  thrown  over  him,  looked  eag- 
erly, and  curiously  at  the  motor. 

**  Why  not  take  him  in  and  give  him  a  ride  to  town!  '*  ex- 
claimed the  good  Commander.  **  It  will  be  the  event  of  his 
life  and  he  looks  so  clean.*' 

So  saying,  he  beckoned  to  the  native  to  seat  himself  on  the 
step  of  the  car.  The  sign  was  understood  and  the  man 
scrambled  eagerly  to  the  place  indicated,  with  a  smile  of 
delight  and  childlike  confidence. 

Adrian  now  having  a  clear  road  for  some  little  distance, 
put  the  car  to  fourth  speed,  leaving  quickly  behind  the  non- 
descript vehicle,  the  trudging  natives,  the  donkeys,  and  the 
flocks  of  sheep.  As  the  pace  quickened,  the  guest  clung  to 
the  side  with  grim  determination,  though  his  eyes  stuck  out 
and  his  smile  faded  away.  Again  they  came  to  crowds,  and 
again  slowed  down.  The  sheep  and  goats  were  scarcely  dis- 
cernible in  the  clouds  of  dust  they  raised ;  and  men  in  every 
degree  of  cleanliness  and  dirt,  even  beggars  in  sodden  rags, 
were  all  hastening  on  as  fast  as  they  could  to  the  town  ahead. 

**  Where  do  they  all  come  from?*'  cried  the  Other-one. 
**  I  've  seen  no  place  where  they  could  abide  except  in  those 
wretched  nomad  tents  we  passed  on  the  desert  below!  " 

They  had  now  reached  the  town,  and  they  rolled  into  it 

[119] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

under  a  gateway.  If  the  Other-one  believed  she  had  seen 
many  people  before,  the  number  was  as  nothing  compared  to 
the  multitude  she  now  saw  surging  through  the  square.  There 
was  a  veritable  pandemonium,  too,  of  guttural  voices,  ba-a-ing 
of  sheep,  braying  of  donkeys,  and  lowing  of  oxen  and  cows. 
The  car  crawled  at  a  snail's  pace  through  the  streets,  and 
past  the  plaza,  where  were  the  most  animated  groups.  The 
native,  who  had  ridden  on  the  car,  had  now  regained  confi- 
dence, but  seemed  happy  to  step  off  alive,  near  a  group  of  his 
friends,  evidently,  and  who  regarded  him  with  great  amaze- 
ment ;  he  returned  their  gaze  with  looks  of  proud  satisfaction 
and  the  air  one  has  who  has  just  escaped  from  the  jaws  of 
death.  He  then  turned,  seized  the  hand  of  the  Commander 
and  imprinted  a  loud  smack  upon  it,  bowed  low,  and  muttered 
unintelligible  gutturals.  Not  contented  with  this,  he  passed 
to  the  other  side  and  caught  the  hand  of  Adrian,  to  his 
immense  disgust,  and  also,  in  spite  of  his  resistance,  kissed 
that.  Then  he  turned  to  the  back  seat,  and  prepared  to  do 
likewise  to  the  Other-one,  but  she  buried  her  hands  in  the 
robe,  crying  out:  ''  Please,  please!  that  will  do.''  While 
Adrian  dexterously  jerked  the  car  aside  and  the  poor  native 
fell  sprawling  back.  Then  on  they  went,  leaving  the  hero  of 
a  wonderful  adventure  surrounded  by  admiring  friends.  Off 
on  the  road,  outside  the  town,  again  and  again  Adrian 
extricated  the  car  from  groups  of  men,  from  flocks  of  sheep 
and  goats,  oxen  that  pranced  and  kicked,  and  donkeys  that 
got,  perversely,  almost  under  the  wheels  of  the  car. 

* '  When  shall  we  reach  Algiers, ' '  cried  the  tired  Com- 
mander, **  at  this  snail's  pace!  " 

**  Never  mind  if  we  don't  go  home  till  morning,"  said  the 
Other-one ;  *  *  to  see  people  in  burnouses,  flocks  of  sheep  and 
goats,  and  donkeys  galore,  on  the  road,  is  a  fascinatingly  new 
experience !  ' ' 

Adrian  threw  back  a  glance,  as  much  as  to  say,  **  If  you 
were  steering  the  car,  Madame,  you  would  find  it  far  from 
fascinating!  " 

As  they  motored  on,  stately  mountains  came  into  view  at 

[120] 


RETURN   TO   ALGIERS 

their  left,  and  in  the  far  distance  some  peaks  with  caps  of 
snow.  The  summits  of  the  range  gleamed  in  the  lessening 
light,  but  the  bases  were  a  deep  indigo  blue ;  for  the  sky  had 
been  gradually  getting  overcast,  and  now  storm-clouds 
dropped  low  and  draped  the  peaks.  The  color  and  changing 
tints  were  superb.  Sometimes  the  sun  would  burst  through  a 
cloud  for  an  instant  and  paint  the  plain  a  vivid  gold,  and  the 
hills  near  had  shaded  from  violet  to  deep  purple,  with 
splashes  of  green  showing  through.  So  the  car  went  on  past 
these  kaleidoscopic  changes  of  color, — purple,  mauve,  deep 
indigo,  dull  green, — ^under  the  clouds  where  some  rain  fell; 
vivid  greens,  yellows,  and  russet  greens  on  the  plain ;  and  again 
as  they  descended  the  hills,  the  blue,  steely  gray  of  the  ocean, 
the  rich  reds  of  the  ploughed  soil,  and  the  now  dark  grays  of 
the  olive  orchards.  In  the  deep  chasms  there  was  the  gloom  of 
nightfall.  The  motor  hummed  on  down  the  perfect  road, 
while  the  travellers  feasted  their  eyes  on  the  riot  of  color. 
Then  all  at  once  everything  turned  to  dark  blue,  then  gray, 
and  then  disappeared  in  a  mist  of  rain. 

The  party  sat  silent,  well  wrapped  in  their  waterproofs, 
with  the  curtains  still  tip,  though  dashes  of  rain  came  in, 
and  they  went  on  in  the  fresh  sweet  air,  in  darkness,  save 
where  the  broad  flashes  from  the  car  lamps  lay  on  the  road 
ahead.  At  last,  Algiers  came  in  sight,  a  myriad  of  twinkling 
lights  in  the  harbor  and  on  the  boulevards,  looking  as  if  the 
stars  had  dropped  from  the  sky  to  the  town. 

They  climbed  to  Mustapha  past  the  gardens,  whence  came 
scents  of  the  flowers  washed  by  rain,  and  so  to  their  haven 
of  a  hotel,  where  luxury  had  never  before  seemed  so  luxurious, 
nor  cleanliness  so  clean. 

"And  what  do  you  think  of  our  trip  to  Bou  Saada? '* 
asked  the  Commander  that  evening,  as  he  swallowed  the  last 
spoonful  of  a  delicious  soup,  served  for  their  supper,  in  their 
littlr  })arlor. 

"  It 's  been  glorious!  '*  answered  the  Other-one.  *'  A  riot 
of  color,  splendid  scenery,  wonderful  roads,  and  a  fascinating 
people.     I  Ve  forgotten  all  about  the  dirty  hotel.'* 

[  121  ] 


CHAPTER  VIII 

A  TRIP  TO  TLEMCEN  BY  MASCARA,  AND  RETURN  ;  WITH  A  VIEW  OP 
THE  RUINS  OF  TIPAZA  ON  THE  WAY 

IT  was  a  day  or  two  after  the  journey  to  Bou  Saada  that 
the  Commander  came  up,  quite  late,  after  luncheon.  His 
eyes  were  sparkling,  and  he  seemed  full  of  suppressed  en- 
thusiasm. He  found  the  Other-one  engaged  in  some  last  prep- 
arations for  their  trip  to  eastern  Algeria  and  Tunisia  — 
which  they  had  planned  to  begin  the  next  day. 

He  exclaimed,  ^ '  Our  plans  are  all  to  be  changed !  we  do  not 
start  for  Tunis  to-morrow,  but  directly  west,  for  Tlemcen." 

The  Other-one  gasped  with  amazement,  ' '  What  do  you 
mean  ?  and  why  are  you  imitating  the  example  of  the  weather- 
cock?'' 

'^  The  wind  which  has  turned  me  in  another  direction  this 
time  is  this:  I  have  been  talking,  for  an  hour,  with  a  most 
interesting  and  intelligent  man,  an  American,  a  Mr.  B — .  He 
has  just  made  an  automobile  trip,  with  his  wife  and  daugh- 
ters, to  Laghouat  and  the  country  of  the  Mzabs,  and  he  is  full 
of  enthusiasm  about  all.  He  says  we  must  on  no  account 
miss  going  there,  and  we  ought  to  get  off  very  soon,  as  later  it 
will  be  pretty  hot  down  on  the  desert.  The  roads  are  pass- 
able; and  on  the  route  we  can  stop  at  caravansaries  —  which 
will  be  a  new  experience  for  us  —  while  at  Laghouat,  and 
Ghardaia,  where  we  would  pass  a  night  at  each  place,  the 
hotels  are  endurable.  It  is  something  over  six  hundred  kilo- 
metres to  Ghardaia,  the  end  of  the  journey,  and  as  it  is  diffi- 
cult, if  not  impossible  to  get  gasoline  down  in  the  country 
through  which  we  go,  Mr.  B —  says,  we  must  ship  it  down  by 
stage,  at  least  a  week  before  we  start  for  Mzab.  So  this  is  why 
we  go  to  Tlemcen  to-morrow,  instead  of  going  there  as  we 
planned  on  our  return  from  Tunis." 

ri22i 


A  TRIP  TO   TLEMCEN 

*  *  Who  are  the  Mzabs  ?  and  where  is  the  Mzab  ?  *  *  asked  the 
Other-one,  recovering  somewhat  from  her  amazement. 

*'  The  Mzab  is  the  country  of  the  Mzabs,  or  Mozabites,  the 
most  original  country  in  the  world.  Its  inhabitants  are  the 
Berbers  belonging  to  a  religious  sect  considered  heretic  by 
the  orthodox  Mussulmans,  and  when  persecuted  by  them,  the 
Mzabs  fled  off  to  the  desert  and  there,  by  force  of  incredible 
labor,  dug  thousanda  of  wells,  and  made  oases  there,  which 
are  wonderful  to  see.  There  is  more  about  these  people  which 
I  will  tell  you  later.  So,  to-morrow,  we  shall  start  at  an  early 
hour  for  Tlemcen.  Take  what  you  like  there,  but  for  Mzab 
we  must  reduce  our  baggage  to  the  absolutely  necessary 
things." 

It  was  a  glorious  morning,  with  a  fresh  breeze,  when  the 
car  swung  down  the  hill  of  Mustapha  Superieur,  by  its  white 
villas  and  verdant  gardens,  to  the  sea  which  had  all  the  tints 
of  blue,  when  the  breeze  rippled  it,  that  one  sees  on  a  pea- 
cock's breast.  It  was  the  plan  of  the  Commander,  this  time, 
to  run  along  the  coast  as  far  as  Tenes,  two  hundred  and  eleven 
kilometres  from  Algiers,  and  then  drop  away  from  it  down 
by  Orleansville,  to  Tlemcen.  The  car  ran  through  the  village 
of  St.  Eugene,  with  its  French  and  Italian  villas,  and  up  and 
down  by  the  blue  sea  before  it,  and  its  abrupt  cliffs  descending 
to  the  water;  then  on  to  pass  Cap  Caxine  with  its  big  light- 
house. Beyond,  on  the  way,  were  scattered  villas,  and  vine- 
yards ran  up  the  hills  at  the  left  and  sometimes  down  to  the 
border  of  the  sea,  with  vegetable  gardens,  green  and  flourish- 
ing between,  and  more  of  these  came  to  view  when  the  travel- 
lers had  passed  through  the  tunnel  of  the  Great  Rock.  This 
time  they  went  again  through  Staoeli  and  near  Sidi  Ferruch 
with  wide  vineyards  stretching  away  as  far  as  the  eye  could 
reach.  Sidi  Ferruch  is  on  almost  an  island  between  its  two 
bays.  The  travellers  recalled  that  it  was  here  the  French 
landed  with  the  army  which  conquered  Algiers.  A  fort 
crowns  the  heights  of  the  bay  at  the  west. 

**  My  Guide  Joanne  gives  the  inscription  which  is  on  the 
entrance  gate  to  that  fort,'*  said  the  Other-one:  *  Here  on  the 

[123] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

fourteenth  of  June,  1830,  by  order  of  the  king,  Charles  X, 
the  French  Army,  under  the  command  of  General  Bourmont, 
came  to  hoist  their  flag,  giving  liberty  to  the  sea,  and  giving 
Algiers  to  France. '  And  a  very  good  thing  it  was  for  Algiers 
too  —  to  be  delivered  from  the  domination  of  those  dreadful 
Turks." 

*'  And  a  very  good  thing  it  was  also  for  France!  *'  added 
the  Commander.  '*  Look  at  this  wonderfully  fertile  country, 
with  its  enormous  vineyards,  its  hundreds  of  plantations  of 
olives  and  oranges,  the  great  oases  of  date-trees;  and  all  so 
near  France.  The  country  is  developing  wonderfully  and 
will  pay  financially  in  the  end,  most  assuredly." 

Still  on  the  car  went,  and  they  saw  the  great  mass  of  the 
Tomheau  de  la  Chretienne,  looming  up  against  the  sky,  see- 
ing which  reminded  the  Other-one  that  she  had  found  out  the 
origin  of  the  name  of  this  extraordinary  monument  which 
they  had  visited  a  few  days  before,  when  she  told  the  Com- 
mander only  the  legends.  **  One  day,"  said  she  now  to  him, 
"  a  Christian  woman,  fleeing  from  a  crowd  of  cruel  pagan 
men  and  women,  fled  up  to  this  tomb  built  by  some  holy  man 
and  took  refuge  there,  but  her  tormentors  came  upon  her  as 
she  was  kneeling  in  prayer,  and  would  have  maltreated  her, 
but  there  came  a  swarm  of  thousands  of  flies,  mosquitoes,  and 
wasps,  and  stung  the  invaders  into  flight.  Ever  afterwards 
the  Christian  woman  lived  the  life  of  a  hermit  in  this  strong- 
hold, and  finally  died  here.  So  from  that  this  monument  was 
called  the  Tomheau  de  la  Cliretienne.*' 

'■ '  That  tale  might  have  a  semblance  of  truth,  if  we  did  not 
know  that  the  archaeologists  have  decided  it  to  be  the  tomb  of 
the  Mauretanian  kings  —  of  Juba,  possibly,"  said  the  Com- 
mander dryly. 

They  now  passed  Castiglione  by-the-sea,  with  its  great  ave- 
nue of  mulberry-trees  leading  down  to  it,  and  wide  vineyards 
back.  Now  the  limit  of  the  hills  of  the  Sahel  had  been 
reached.  The  beautiful  mountain  of  Chenoua  was  growing 
more  distinct  above  the  gloriously  blue  Bay  of  Tipaza. 

**  You  remember  we  are  to  stop  at  Tipaza,  and  see  the 

[  124  ] 


A  TRIP   TO   TLEMCEN 

ruins  there,  if  no  more  than  those  of  the  church  of  St.  Salsa, 
whose  story  I  love  best  of  all  the  stories  of  youthful  saints. 
We  must  find  a  guide  here,  for  the  ground  is  so  strewn  with 
ruins,  it  will  be  hard  to  find  the  church.*' 

'*We  shall  be  a  little  late  at  Cherchel,  which  is  seventy 
kilometres  from  here,  but  we  must  certainly  stop  here,  and 
we  can  pick  up  a  guide  at  the  village,*'  the  Commander  re- 
turned. Upon  inquiry  at  the  small  unambitious  town  on  the 
bay,  however,  no  guide  could  be  found,  so  they  went  on  some 
distance  beyond,  to  where  the  land  falls  away  from  the  sea, 
and  where  the  low  wall  runs  along  by  the  road,  and  the  grass 
beyond  is  strewn  with  ruins  as  far  as  the  eye  can  reach,  and 
heaps  of  masonry  and  broken  columns  show  through  the  trees 
above  the  bay.  As  the  Two  were  about  to  climb  the  wall,  a 
wrinkled  old  Arab  —  who  had  come  up  to  the  car  when  it 
stopped  —  seeing  them,  asked  in  passable  French,  if  they 
wished  a  guide  to  show  them  around. 

"  Certainly  we  want  one,"  answered  the  Other-one.  **Do 
you  know  where  the  church  of  St.  Salsa  is?  "  The  Arab  re- 
plied that  he  had  worked  with  some  archa?ologists  here  and 
that  he  knew  all  the  ruins,  **  but,"  he  added,  **  you  are  some 
distance  from  the  church  of  St.  Salsa.  It  is  on  the  hill  the 
other  side  of  the  bay,  to  the  east." 

**  That  wretched  Moses !  "  exclaimed  the  Other-one.  **  Then 
he  knew  nothing  about  the  ruins.  He  said  they  were  just 
here!  "  When  the  car  had  rounded  the  bay,. the  old  man  had 
the  chauffeur  stop  near  a  field  where  some  lentils  were  grow- 
ing, and  he  took  the  Two  up  the  hill  beyond  it  where  all 
through  the  grass  wild  flowers  were  growing  in  profusion. 
There  were  many  stone  sarcophagi  scattered,  open,  with  the 
covers  lying  near,  some  all  broken  up.  In  the  cliffs  falling 
down  to  the  sea  on  one  side,  were  tombs  cut  in  the  rock. 
Farther  up  the  travellers  climbed  with  the  guide  a  high  cliff 
overlooking  all  the  bay  and  the  great  symmetrical  mountain 
of  Chenoua,  a  soft  misty  violet  now  rising  above  it.  The  bay 
was  of  the  most  indescribable  blue,  changing  near  the  shore  to 
a  turquoise  color,  and  farther  on,  near  the  line  of  shore  under 

[125] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

the  mountain,  it  had  the  rich  lustre  of  tourmaline,  and  it 
beat  on  the  curving  shore  line,  fringing  it  with  an  edge  of 
pearl. 

Upon  this  cliff  the  guide  pointed  out  the  ruins  of  the  ba- 
silica of  St.  Salsa,  which  was  first  a  small  chapel  to  contain 
her  remains,  and  later  was  built  into  a  big  basilica.  Here  are 
three  aisles,  preceded  by  a  porch;  some  of  the  pillars  are 
standing  upright,  and  there  are  courses  of  stone  on  the  sides 
still  remaining.  Inside,  the  old  man  showed  them  an  inscrip- 
tion which  indicated  that  the  body  of  the  saint  had  been 
placed  under  the  altar. 

"  What  a  lovely,  peaceful  place!  There  is  no  sound  here 
but  the  splash  of  the  waves  beating  on  the  shore  below !  ' '  said 
the  Other-one,  sitting  down  on  a  fragment  of  a  pillar.  *  *  What 
a  glorious  view !  And  see  how  the  sweet  alyssum  grows  in  such 
profusion  all  around  here,  and  perfumes  the  air!  It  must 
have  been  St.  Salsa 's  flower!  This  is  a  most  fitting  place  to 
tell  you  her  story  now.  Salsa  was  a  young  Pagan  girl,  living 
at  the  end  of  the  fourth  century,  and  converted  to  Christian- 
ity at  the  age  of  fourteen.  There  was  a  temple  built  outside 
of  the  city  on  a  rocky  cliff  just  above  the  sea  (it  may  have 
been  just  here),  and  in  this  temple  was  a  great  dragon  of 
brass,  an  idol  which  the  Pagans  worshipped.  One  day  Salsa 
went  to  the  temple  with  her  parents,  who  were  Pagan.  She 
was  horrified  at  the  impious  orgies,  and  later,  she  introduced 
herself,  with  great  courage,  into  the  temple  where  the  demon 
was,  and  threw  first  its  head,  and  then  its  whole  body,  rolling 
down  the  cliff  into  the  sea.  The  people,  hearing  the  noise, 
ran  to  the  place,  and  seeing  it  was  Salsa  who  had  committed 
the  sacrilege,  fell  upon  her  and  killed  her  at  once,  sending 
her  body  down  the  cliff  also  into  the  sea,  which  received  it 
gently,  and  pushed  it  along  on  soft  seaweed  until  it  rested 
where  her  sepulchre  was  to  be.  The  remains  were  afterwards 
taken  by  Christians,  and  a  chapel  was  built  over  them,  which 
later  grew  into  this  basilica.  It  is  a  pathetic  story,  is  it  not, 
of  the  ardent  young  Christian?  Now  Tipaza  was  one  of  the 
cities  where  they  practiced  the  Christian  religion  early,  with 

[126] 


A  TRIP  TO  TLEMCEN 

the  utmost  fervor.  Here  it  was  in  484  that  those  Christians, 
who  would  not  embrace  certain  heresies,  had  their  hands  cut 
off  and  tongues  cut  out,  and  as  they  continued  to  speak  after- 
wards, this  miracle  had  great  effect  in  the  Christian  world. '  * 

The  Two  walked  silently  down  the  hill,  through  the  scat- 
tered sarcophagi  of  the  Christian  cemetery  to  the  car,  the 
Other-one  first  stopping  to  pick  a  bunch  of  sweet  alyssum  in 
memory  of  poor  Saint  Salsa. 

The  old  Arab  also  gathered,  from  the  clefts  in  the  rocks,  a 
bunch  of  the  spicy  absinth,  from  which  the  liquor  is  made, 
and  this  he  thought  much  more  valuable. 

The  travellers  came  to  the  ancient  Caesarea  —  now  Cher- 
chel  —  a  little  late,  and  to  be  consistent  they  took  their  lunch- 
eon at  the  Hotel  Juba. 

On  the  road  again,  and  off  above  the  blue  sea,  to  come  in 
the  sunset's  glow  to  the  primitive  town  of  Tenes,  entering  it 
by  a  long  avenue  of  shade  trees.  It  lies  on  a  high  plateau 
above  the  sea,  and  has  a  flavor  of  the  ancient  times  when  it 
was  a  Phoenician  town,  and  later  the  Roman  Cartennais, 
where  Augustus  established  a  colony  of  veterans. 

The  travellers  drew  up  at  a  hotel  as  primitive  as  the  town, 
where  a  prim  French  landlady  made  them  as  comfortable  as 
she  could,  and  gave  them  clean  little  rooms  off  a  small  court- 
yard, where  chickens  ran  riot,  and  friendly  roosters  crowed 
the  tired  Motorists  asleep  and  awakened  them  early  in  the 
morning. 

The  sky  was  heavy  with  rain  clouds,  and  the  sea  had  lost 
its  beautiful  color  and  was  thrashing  angrily  on  the  shore, 
when  the  travellers  turned  away  from  old  Tenes.  They  ran 
on  down  to  Orleansville  through  the  mountain  region  called 
the  Dahra,  between  the  sea  and  the  Chelif  Valley.  In  the 
town  they  crossed  the  Chelif,  the  longest  river  of  Algeria, 
and  which  gives  its  name  to  the  valley,  stretching  away  with 
green  fields  of  young  barley,  and  sewn  with  wild  flowers  in 
the  waste  places. 

Orleansville  is  a  flourishing,  if  uninteresting  modern  town, 
and  is  built  on  the  site  of  an  ancient  Roman  city.    When  the 

[127] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

town  was  founded,  in  1843,  the  ruins  of  a  big  basilica  were 
discovered  where  the  market  place  was  being  laid  out.  From 
an  inscription  in  the  mosaic  pavement  found  there,  it  appears 
that  this  church  was  constructed  under  Constantine,  and  is 
one  of  the  most  ancient  in  Africa. 

Our  travellers  pushed  on  from  this  city  in  a  heavy  rain 
and  arrived,  for  the  night,  at  Mascara  situated  on  a  moun- 
tain of  the  chain  of  Beni-Chougran,  called  by  the  natives 
Chouareb-el-Rih  (the  lips  of  the  wind),  for  the  fogs  of  the 
winter  and  the  winds  of  spring  do  not  arrive  here  until  they 
have  crossed  the  range.  This  town  is  associated  with  the 
memory  of  Abd-el-Kader  the  great  Moslem  chief  of  the  Faith- 
ful. It  was  here  he  established  his  seat  of  government  in 
1832,  and  was  finally  driven  away  by  Marshal  Bugeaud  in 
1841.  Before  they  left  in  the  morning,  the  travellers  went 
down  to  see  the  Mosque  of  Ain-Beida,  outside  the  walls,  and 
now  used  as  a  grain  store. 

*'I  have  always  rather  admired  Abd-el-Kader,**  said  the 
Commander,  as  they  stood  looking  at  the  picturesque  mosque 
with  its  white  dome  and  minaret,  shaded  by  tall  pepper-trees. 
*  *  You  know  something  of  his  story  ?  Abd-el-Kader  was  a  de- 
scendant of  the  Prophet.  When  the  Turkish  dominion  was 
put  an  end  to  by  the  capture  of  Algiers,  all  the  Arab  tribes 
fell  at  once  into  anarchy.  The  French  could  not  prevent  the 
rising  insurrection.  Then  it  was  that  Abd-el-Kader  was  pro- 
claimed Sultan,  and  he  began  at  once  to  preach  the  holy  war 
against  the  infidel.  There  was  a  series  of  battles;  but  after 
some  victories  he  lost  point  after  point,  the  French  making 
conquests  on  every  side.  Finally, — though  showing  the 
greatest  bravery, —  surrounded  on  every  side  by  enemies,  he 
was  forced  to  give  himself  up.  It  was  in  this  mosque,  as  you 
know,  that  he  preached  the  holy  war.** 

The  Motorists  regained  their  car  and  were  soon  on  the  way 
to  Tlemcen  under  a  blue  sky  free  from  all  clouds.  At  noon 
they  came  to  Sidi-bel- Abbas,  situated  in  one  of  the  most  fertile 
regions  of  Algeria,  and  the  best  colonized.  They  grow  much 
wheat  around  here,  and  there  are  many  vineyards  and  olive 

[128] 


A  TRIP  TO   TLEMCEN 

groves  in  the  environs.  It  was  early  in  the  afternoon  when 
the  travellers  arrived  at  the  point  about  six  kilometres  from 
Tlemcen  where  they  could  see  the  gorge  of  the  Saf-Saf  River 
where  it  falls  down  in  a  series  of  cascades — some  a  hundred 
feet  —  over  thirteen  hundred  feet.  These  cascades  are  called 
El  Ourit,  signifying,  in  Arabic,  the  Abyss.  From  the  sky 
line  the  snowy  mass  of  water  comes  tumbling  down  by  stages, 
with  a  great  wall  of  green  bushes,  ferns,  and  vines  encircling 
it,  of  the  richest  luxuriance;  the  water  falling  at  last  in  a 
spray  like  powdered  diamonds  where  the  sun*s  rays  strike  it. 

A  small  and  insistent  Arab  boy  urged  the  Two,  as  they 
stood  looking  up  to  the  beautiful  sight  after  descending  from 
the  car,  to  climb  up  to  the  cascade.  Nothing  loth,  they  fol- 
lowed him  up  a  steep  and  very  damp  path  that  wound  about 
under  the  trees  and  through  the  dank  fronds  of  the  ferns. 
It  was  a  sylvan  place  and  one  could  well  imagine  wood 
nymphs  and  dryads  sporting  in  the  green  shade.  Led  up 
and  up  by  the  insistent  Arab,  the  Two  climbed  on  and  they 
came  above  one  cascade  to  see  still  above  them,  another  foamy 
mass  of  water  plunging  down ;  but  alas !  to  dispel  all  illusions, 
there  was  a  common  railroad  bridge  spanning  the  beautiful 
gorge,  and  which  the  Arab  boy  seemed  to  consider  the  point 
most  to  be  admired.  **  Alas!  *'  sighed  the  Other-one,  **  we 
can*t  get  away  from  railroads  and  telegraph  poles,  even  here 
where  one  would  think  it  far  enough  from  the  haunts  of  men 
to  be  the  haunts  of  nymphs  and  dryads  alone.*' 

They  descended  the  dizzy  path,  to  continue  the  journey  to 
Tlemcen.  They  had  for  some  time,  before  arriving  at  El 
Ourit,  seen  the  mountains  at  the  foot  of  whose  jutting  red 
cliffs  Tlemcen  lies.  Now  the  walls  of  the  city  and  its  mina- 
rets, surrounded  with  groves  of  olives  and  oaks,  began  to  be 
visible,  and  soon  they  were  rolling  under  the  gate  of  Bou- 
Medine  into  the  streets  of  the  ancient  town.  The  car  came 
to  a  stop  near  a  small,  plain-looking  hotel,  and  the  travellers 
stepped  at  once  into  a  court  glassed  over,  with  balconies  run- 
ning around  it  on  the  second  story,  on  to  which  the  bedrooms 
opened.    A  steep  staircase  on  one  side  ran  up  to  them.    This 

[129] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

hotel  was  not  in  any  special  need  of  guests,  judging  by  the 
nonchalant  demeanor  of  the  patron,  who  came  sauntering  out 
of  his  small  office  opposite  the  entrance,  and,  with  the  air  of 
conferring  a  great  favor,  finally  allowed  a  very  slatternly 
young  maid  to  show  the  newcomers  a  room  opening  off  the 
balcony  above.  This  proved  a  surprise,  with  its  rather  home- 
like air,  to  which  the  high  wide  bed  and  red  curtains  con- 
tributed. The  slatternly  maid,  assisted  by  a  very  dull  Arab 
boy,  after  some  time  succeeded  in  building  a  fire  in  the  chim- 
ney place,  for  the  travellers  found  the  air  quite  crisp,  Tlem- 
cen  lying  some  twenty-five  hundred  feet  up. 

As  it  was  a  little  late  to  do  any  sight-seeing,  the  Other-one 
seated  herself  by  the  fireplace  and  began  to  impart  to  the 
Commander  such  bits  of  knowledge  as  she  had  been  able  to 
pick  up  about  Tlemcen. 

'*  It  is  a  strange  old  town  and  has  had  a  very  interesting 
history*'  she  said,  looking  thoughtfully  into  the  fire.  **  It  is 
one  of  the  most  original  cities  of  North  Africa,  and  the  Moor- 
ish architecture  is  seen  here  at  the  best.  It  is  the  only  city 
where  are  found  edifices  of  the  Arab-Berbers,  and  it  is  said 
they  will  bear  comparison  with  those  of  Spain.  Most  of  these 
buildings  date  from  the  end  of  the  thirteenth  century,  and 
some  from  the  fourteenth.  The  city  is  situated  in  a  mass  of 
green,  of  carob-trees,  terebinth-trees,  and  hundred-year-old 
olive-trees.  Tlemcen  became  the  Moorish  capital  of  Western 
Algeria.  It  was  one  of  the  most  civilized  towns  of  the  world 
about  the  middle  of  the  sixteenth  century.  It  is  now  a  very 
prosperous  town,  and  has  a  large  trade  with  Europe.  What 
we  have  to  see  are  two  or  three  beautiful  mosques,  one  espe- 
cially outside  the  walls,  and  the  museum  is  in  one. ' ' 

When  the  Two  went  down  to  dinner  that  evening,  in  the 
long  narrow  dining-room,  they  had  no  reason  to  complain  of 
the  quality  of  the  dishes  placed  before  them.  They  were 
served,  however,  by  a  large,  brawny  Arab,  who,  though  ar- 
rayed in  a  white  jacket  and  a  new  fez,  had  on  a  pair  of  ex- 
tremely baggy  trousers,  originally  white,  but  now  a  deep  cof- 
fee-color with  long  usage.     These  —  to  the  amusement  of  the 

[130] 


THE  ARAB  WOMEN  AT  BOU-MEDINE 

HAVING  THEIR  "  PICTURES 

TAKEN  »»  WITH  THE  COMMANDER 


LITTLE  GIRLS  OF  TLEMCKX,  IN  GALA  ATTIRE  ON  THEIR 
FETE  DAY  | 


ANCIENT   CHRISTIAN   CEIVIETERY   AT    TIPAZA 


EUINS  OF  THE  BASILICA  OF  ST.  SALSA  AT  TIPAZA 


A  TRIP   TO   TLEMCEN 

Other-one,  who  was  generally  the  one  to  be  much  concerned 
when  cleanliness  was  in  question  —  so  got  on  the  Comman- 
der *8  nerves  that  he  exclaimed  to  the  Lady,  **  Tell  that  Arab, 
that,  if  he  will  put  on  a  clean  pair  of  trousers  to-morrow,  I 
will  give  him  three  francs ! ' ' 

The  Two  descended  to  the  court  the  next  morning  to  find 
their  guide  —  a  patriarchal  old  Arab  in  the  whitest  of  haiks  — 
awaiting  them.  He  took  charge  of  them  in  a  solemnly  pater- 
nal way.  He  first  went  with  them  down  the  quaint  streets 
to  the  esplanade,  which  is  shaded  by  tall  trees,  to  show  them 
the  Mechouar,  a  citadel  which  was  the  official  residence  of  the 
Sultans  of  Tlemcen,  including  the  Governors  of  the  Almo- 
hades,  and  the  Kings  of  the  Abd-el-Ouadites.  It  was  once  of 
the  greatest  splendor  and  luxury.  It  had  a  beautiful  gallery, 
all  paved  with  marble  and  onyx.  Here  was  a  wonderful  tree 
erected  by  one  of  the  Sultans,  and  on  it  there  were  singing 
birds  of  all  the  species  in  existence.  These  were  all  made  of 
gold  and  silver.  There  was  a  clock  in  the  palace  which  ex- 
cited the  wonder  of  everybody  who  saw  it.  This  was  built 
two  hundred  years  before  that  of  Strasburg.  Now  there  re- 
mains not  much  of  the  old  palace  that  has  not  been  made  over 
into  barracks  for  the  soldiers.  The  old  walls  and  high  monu- 
mental gate  the  travellers  found  very  imposing.  As  they 
came  out  of  the  great  courtyard,  the  Other-one  was  astonished 
and  charmed  to  see  a  group  of  little  girls  who  were  jumping 
around  and  playing  out  in  the  streets  and  on  the  sidewalks, 
looking  like  tropical  butterflies  which  had  just  fluttered  down 
there.  They  were  arrayed  in  the  most  marvellous  of  cos- 
tumes and  they  looked  as  if  they  were  prepared  to  take  part 
in  some  grand  fairy  spectacle.  Some  were  dressed  in  robes 
of  striped  gauze  of  gold  color;  some  had  red,  pink,  or 
blue  satin  dresses,  all  embroidered  in  gold ;  while  others  had 
light  yellow  satin  gowns,  with  filmy  lace  overskirts.  All  were 
more  or  less  decked  out  in  necklaces  of  pearls;  armlets,  ear- 
rings, and  anklets  of  silver  or  gold;  and  some  of  these  ap- 
peared to  have  much  value,  so  that  the  Commander,  who  cast 
an  appreciative  eye  at  them,  estimated  that  some  of  the  gay 

[131] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

little  creatures  had  on  jewellery  to  the  value  of  three  or  four 
hundred  dollars,  surely  too  much  to  expose  to  chance  of  loss  in 
their  gambols.  Also,  the  little  heads  were  adorned  with  gay 
little  caps,  some  of  them  pointed  and  embroidered  in  silver 
and  gold,  with  floating  veils. 

* '  What  are  they !  ' '  she  cried  to  the  old  Arab,  * '  or  is  this 
the  special  costume  of  the  little  girls  of  Tlemcen  ?  ' ' 

'  *  No,  my  lady !  It  is  not  their  general  dress,  but  to-day  is 
a  fete  day  for  the  little  girls,  and  all  Moorish,  Arabic,  or  Jew- 
ish girls  wear  the  best  they  have. '  * 

Then  he  took  the  travellers  down  to  the  Rue  d 'Alger,  where, 
on  the  corner  of  the  square,  is  the  Grand  Mosque  or  the 
Djama  el  Kebir.  It  is  quite  a  spacious  building  and  it  has  a 
beautiful  minaret,  square,  with  fanciful  brick  work,  and  deco- 
rated on  the  four  sides  with  panels  of  terra  cotta  work.  They 
went  in  through  a  corridor  and  shuffled  into  the  mosque  with 
the  yellow  slippers  with  which,  as  usual  in  mosques,  they  were 
shod.  The  beautiful  court  is  built  of  onyx  and  there  is  a 
fountain  in  the  centre.  Some  devotees  were  praying  in  the 
mosque  with  the  same  impassibility  to  outward  impression 
that  the  travellers  had  observed  in  the  devout  in  other 
mosques.  The  Two  stopped  to  examine  the  elaborate  ara- 
besque work  in  the  archway  of  the  imposing  mihrab,  then  they 
shuffled  out  again,  from  the  twilight  of  the  interior  to  the 
bright  sunshine.  They  crossed  the  Place  d 'Alger  to  see  the 
small  but  beautiful  Mosque  of  Aboul  Hassan,  which  has  now 
been  converted  into  a  museum  of  the  antiquities  found  in 
Tlemcen.  Upon  entering  here  the  Other-one  rejoiced  exceed- 
ingly that  she  was  not  to  be  invested  in  huge  slippers  and  to 
have  to  execute  difficult  feats  of  gymnastics  to  keep  them  on. 
Here  are  columns  and  capitals  of  Arab  workmanship,  beauti- 
ful old  glazed  tiles,  rich  in  iridescent  hues,  Arabic  inscrip- 
tions and  texts  from  the  Koran  in  lovely  stucco-work.  The 
interior  itself  is  very  highly  decorated,  and  rows  of  horse- 
shoe arcades  divide  it  into  three  halls.  The  roofs  of  these  are 
in  carved  cedar,  with  paintings,  and  are  upheld  by  six 
columns  of  Algerian  onyx.    The  gem  of  the  whole  place  how- 

[  132  ] 


A  TRIP  TO   TLEMCEN 

ever,  which  the  guardian  there  hastened  to  show  them,  is  the 
mihrab,  probably  the  loveliest  specimen  of  Arabic  work  in 
the  world.  Oriental  writers  have  declared  it  to  be  worth  a 
journey  to  Tlemcen  to  view.  The  mosque  was  built  in  1298 
in  honor  of  a  learned  lawyer,  the  Abou  Hassen  Ibn  Yaklef  el 
Tenessi,  as  the  guardian  glibly  told  the  travellers. 

*  *  What  a  name !  would  this  lawyer  have  been  as  eminent 
with  a  simpler  one?  **  asked  the  Other-one.  The  guardian,  a 
Frenchman,  looked  puzzled. 

As  they  came  out  of  the  mosque,  the  lady  turned  to  look 
up  to  the  minaret  with  its  brickwork  and  little  pillars,  when 
she  discovered  a  father  stork  standing  on  the  edge  of  a  big 
nest  in  the  top  of  this,  and  looking  down  gravely  into  the  in- 
terior of  the  nest,  probably  at  some  small  storks.  The  Place 
d 'Alger  was  filled  with  a  crowd  composed  of  Biblical-looking 
natives,  gravely  walking  up  and  down,  and  there  were  ven- 
ders of  oranges  and  dates,  and  water-carriers,  bearing  along 
great  jars  of  water,  with  drinking  cups.  Occasionally  some 
veiled  woman  drifted  across  the  square,  but  the  gay  little 
tropical  birds  of  girls  were  flying  in  and  out  the  crowd  in 
their  play,  showing  like  brilliant  threads  against  the  fabric 
of  creamy  burnouses. 

The  guide  went  now  to  the  car  where  Adrian  was  waiting, 
and  the  party  rode  outside  the  walls  of  the  city  to  the  Mosque 
of  Sidi-el-Haloui,  the  confectioner  Saint.  The  guide  related 
to  the  Two,  as  they  rode  along,  the  history  of  this  saint.  He 
was  once  a  Cadi  in  Spain,  having  been  born  at  Seville.  He 
went  on  a  pilgrimage  to  Sidi  Okba,  and  came  back  to  Tlem- 
cen where  he  settled  as  a  baker  of  sweetmeats.  The  kind  he 
made  are  called  Halouat  in  Arabic,  and  the  name  El  Haloui 
was  given  to  him  on  that  account.  He  used  to  preach  to  the 
children,  and  a  great  swarm  would  crowd  round  his  stall,  so 
the  whole  town  got  to  know  and  worship  him. 

This  mosque  was  something  like  the  Grand  Mosque,  and 
they  found  it  decorated  with  the  beautiful  arabesque  work, 
and  the  arches  upheld  by  magnificent  onyx  columns  of  which 
the  capitals  are  quite  remarkable.     As  they  went  out,  they 

[133] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

noticed  especially  the  beautiful  portal  with  mosaics  and  ara- 
besques, and  with  its  overhanging  roof  in  decorated  flutings. 

The  trip  to  the  village  of  Bou-Medine  or  El  Eubbad  led 
through  groves  of  hoary  olives,  in  one  of  which  they  saw  tombs 
built  like  pavilions,  but  many  very  old  and  in  a  dilapidated 
state.  The  old  man  told  them  this  grove  was  the  Bois  Sacre, 
or  Sacred  Wood.  It  was  a  sort  of  unkempt-looking  place  and 
some  of  the  trees  were  half  decayed  and  falling  down.  The 
guide  said  that  in  this  place  no  one  was  ever  allowed  to  cut 
down  any  tree.  Here  at  the  farther  end  is  the  tomb  of  a 
much  revered  saint,  where  many  women  come;  and  here  the 
sick  who  can  walk  come  to  cure  themselves  by  bringing  a  hen 
and  picking  it  clean  of  feathers.  The  Other-one  could  not 
find  out  the  reason  for  this  singular  custom,  for  the  old  Arab 
either  could  not  or  would  not  tell  her;  nor  did  she  dare  ask 
if  the  hen  was  picked  alive.  They  saw  farther  on,  near  an 
ancient  dilapidated  tomb,  an  old  woman,  wrapped  in  a  dis- 
colored mantle,  and  stripping  a  chicken,  which  certainly  was 
not  alive,  and  from  which  the  white  feathers  were  blown 
around  by  the  breeze  like  snowflakes.  As  the  travellers  rode 
on,  passing  the  old  Arab  cemetery,  where  are  some  ancient 
koubbas,  the  grave  and  intelligent  old  guide  told  them  some- 
thing of  the  saint  whose  mosque  they  were  about  to  visit. 

Sidi  Bou-Medine  {hou  means  lord  in  Arabic)  was  born  at 
Seville,  in  Spain,  in  the  year  520  of  the  Hegira  (A.  D.  1126). 
He  went  over  into  Fez  where  he  studied  theology;  he  then 
travelled  all  over  Spain,  visited  Tlemcen  and  El  Eubbad, 
where  he  expressed  a  strong  wish  to  be  buried  when  he  should 
die.  He  afterwards  gave  lectures  in  Bagdad,  Bougie,  Seville, 
and  Cordova ;  then  he  came  to  settle  down  and  lecture  at  the 
court  of  the  Sultan  Yakoub  el  Mansour.  When  he  died  he 
had  a  magnificent  tomb  and  mausoleum  built  for  him  by  the 
Black  Sultan  Abou  el  Hassen  Ali,  which  was  afterwards 
enriched  and  embellished  by  successive  sultans.  The  wretched 
village  of  El  Eubbad  lies  on  a  hill,  and  a  rough,  rocky  lane 
leads  up  to  it.  Adrian  drove  the  car  up  as  far  as  it  was  pos- 
sible to  go,  then  the  party  got  out  to  walk  up  the  uneven  and 

[134] 


A  TRIP   TO   TLEMCEN 

rutty  road  by  some  half  ruined  houses.  Some  of  the  natives, 
rather  poverty-stricken  creatures,  came  out  to  view  the 
strangers,  and,  to  the  delight  of  the  Other-one,  more  little 
butterflies  of  girls  fluttered  out,  but  they  were  grave  and  less 
playful  than  those  she  had  seen  at  Tlemcen.  Their  dresses 
were  not  so  fine  in  quality,  perhaps,  but  equally  gay  in  color, 
and  some  of  them  were  decorated  even  more  profusely  with 
necklaces  and  bracelets  and  the  gay  little  caps  with  the  gold 
and  silver  embroidery,  and  two  or  three  had  spangled  gauze 
veils  depending  from  them,  which  made  them  seem  more  like 
butterflies  than  ever,  as  the  veils  floated  in  the  breeze  when 
the  little  creatures  moved  around. 

The  guide  took  his  people  up  to  where  was  a  wooden  gate 
which  has  arabesques  painted  in  colors,  and  it  opens  on  a 
gallery  paved  with  small  glazed  tile,  which  sparkled  when 
the  sun  touched  them.  On  the  right  is  the  mosque  with  its 
beautiful  minaret  decorated  richly  in  tiles.  Farther  on  was 
a  building  which  the  guide  said  was  the  Medersa,  a  college 
which  was  for  higher  class  students  and  which  was  founded 
by  a  sultan  in  747  of  the  Ilegira  (A.  D.  1349).  At  the  left 
of  the  gallery  is  the  koubba  of  the  venerated  saint.  They 
had  here  to  walk  up  some  steps  with  the  old  guide,  who  de- 
livered them  to  a  grave-looking  young  Arab  standing  at  the 
entrance  to  a  beautiful  court  surrounded  with  arcades  having 
marble  columns  to  support  them.  They  stopped  a  few  mo- 
ments to  look  at  the  exquisite  onyx  fountain,  the  margin  of 
which  is  deeply  worn  by  a  chain,  the  devotees  using  it  to  pull 
up  water  from  a  well  connected  with  the  fountain  and  which 
the  grave  Arab  said  was  the  most  salubrious  water  in  the 
world.    From  this  court  a  door  goes  into  the  koubba. 

Inside  the  entrance  to  the  koubba  stood  a  tall  and  splendid- 
looking  Moslem,  with  a  long  silky  black  beard,  and  a  huge 
white  turban,  and  he  was  clad  in  the  snowiest  of  raiment. 
His  air  and  manner  of  admitting  them  seemed  as  if  they  were 
being  allowed,  as  the  greatest  privilege  in  the  whole  world, 
to  approach  near  the  tomb  of  the  most  holy  of  saints.  The 
beauty  of  the  decorations  outside  here,  the  solemn  stillness 

[135] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

around,  and  more  effectually,  the  reverential  manner  of  this 
grand-looking  Mohammedan,  were  sufficient  to  repress  any 
flippancy  on  the  part  of  sight-seers.  Moreover,  in  the  sombre 
light  of  the  koubba,  seeing  the  great  catafalque  in  carved 
wood,  covered  with  the  richest  gold  and  silver  brocade  em- 
broidered in  inscriptions,  the  Other-one  felt  a  sensation  of 
awe  and  a  sadness  —  as  if  she  were  standing  by  the  tomb  of 
a  great  and  good  man  whom  she  had  known  and  revered — > 
such  as  she  had  not  before  experienced  in  her  journeyings 
and  sight-seeing  in  this  strange  country,  and  she  noted  too, 
that  the  Commander  shared  her  feelings. 

When  they  became  a  little  more  accustomed  to  the  obscur- 
ity of  the  koubba  they  saw  that  from  the  dome  above  were 
suspended  all  sorts  of  flags,  ostrich  eggs,  candles,  lanterns, 
and  rich  brocades;  on  the  walls  —  of  fine  arabesque  work  — 
were  hung  mirrors  and  crude  paintings  of  the  holy  cities. 
The  Commander,  always  a  careful  observer,  pointed  out  to 
her  that  the  handles,  hinges,  grates,  and  window  bars  of  the 
koubba  were  made  of  bronze,  or  wrought  iron,  and  were  of 
most  beautiful  workmanship. 

*'  Those  show,'*  said  he,  "  Spanish-Arabic  work.*' 

The  grand-looking  guardian  of  the  tomb  pointed  out,  in 
cartouches,  here  and  there  in  the  arabesque  work  on  the  walls, 
the  constant  repetition  of  a  phrase  in  Arabic  **  El  mulk 
Lillah  ''  (The  kingdom  is  God's). 

From  here  the  two  went  down  to  the  mosque,  which  they 
found  much  more  beautiful  in  work  and  decoration  than  the 
koubba.  There  they  entered  under  a  monumental  portico, 
which  had  an  inscription  showing  that  the  Sultan  Aboul- 
Hassen-Ali,  the  conqueror  of  Tlemcen,  built  it  in  1339.  They 
crossed  the  court,  paved  with  fine  tiles,  and,  accompanied  by 
another  fine-looking  Moslem,  who  watched  them  closely 
always,  they  entered  the  mosque  by  massive  cedar-wood  doors 
adorned  with  most  admirable  bronze  work,  **  of  a  pattern  so 
beautiful  and  intricate  that  only  Ghiberti's  work  in  Florence 
can  be  named  beside  them."  The  prayer  chamber  is  divided 
into  four  naves,  decorated  with  very  fine  work  much  like  the 

[136] 


A  TRIP  TO   TLEMCEN 

exquisite  arabesques  in  the  mihrab  in  the  museum  in  Tlera- 
cen.  The  dome  has  the  wonderful  honey-comb  work  which 
the  guardian  pointed  out  as  the  most  important  of  this  kind 
of  work,  in  Tlemcen.  The  mihrab,  he  said,  had  been  given  by 
the  great  Abd-el-Kader  to  replace  a  marble  one,  broken;  the 
mimhar  is  wonderfully  beautiful.  As  they  went  back,  they 
noted  only  two  or  three  devotees,  one,  a  holy  man  with  long 
white  beard,  fingering  his  string  of  beads,  who  looked  out  at 
them  from  under  his  heavy  white  eyebrows  with  an  expres- 
sion of  dislike,  and  as  if  he  would  annihilate  the  infidels  if 
he  could.  They  went  on  to  see  if  it  were  possible  to  get  into 
the  Medersa,  but  though  the  guide  sent  some  boys  for  the 
guardian's  key,  he  could  not  succeed  in  getting  it  opened. 
As  they  came  down  the  steps,  a  Jewish-looking  man  was 
standing  below  holding  the  hand  of  a  wonderful  little  crea- 
ture, a  more  gorgeous  little  butterfly  than  any  the  Other-one 
had  yet  seen;  for  her  jewellery  was  marvellous  to  behold. 
She  wore  a  beautiful  pearl  necklace  of  much  value  around 
her  neck.  The  man  who  held  her  tightly  by  the  hand  was 
evidently  very  proud  of  the  attention  she  attracted,  and  al- 
lowed the  delighted  Other-one  to  take  her  picture. 

The  Other-one  was  delighted,  also,  upon  regaining  the  car, 
for  two  Arab  women,  wrapped  to  the  eyes  in  white  mantles, 
were  curiously  looking  at  it,  and  with  very  little  demur  they 
consented  to  stand  with  the  good  Commander  and  be  **  snapped 
up,**  which  was  very  extraordinary  indeed. 

The  next  day  the  travellers  were  to  visit  Mansoura,  but  the 
guide  wished  them  to  wait  until  the  afternoon,  as  the  light 
would  be  much  better  on  the  ruins. 

While  at  luncheon  that  day  the  Other-one  told  the  Com- 
mander something  of  what  she  had  picked  up  about  the 
wonderful  city  of  Mansoura.  It  appears  it  was  built  by  the 
Sultan  Abou  Yakoub  in  the  thirteenth  century  when  he 
besieged  Tlemcen.  The  Sultan  was  seven  years  doing  this, 
and  meantime,  being  a  man  of  great  energy,  he  devoted  his 
time  to  building  Mansoura.  He  made  a  great  city  of  it,  with 
baths  and  mosques  and  all  the  advantages  of  Eastern  civili- 

[137] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

zation.  The  fortifications  enclosed  a  rectangular  space  of 
three  hundred  acres.  The  walls,  or  ramparts,  were  five  feet 
thick  and  thirty-nine  feet  high,  with  towers  at  intervals  of 
one  hundred  and  twenty-five  feet,  and  were  built  of  concrete. 
However,  when  Tlemcen  yielded  to  the  troops  of  the  Sultan, 
the  new  city  was  abandoned.  When  the  Ouadites  took  pos- 
session of  Tlemcen  they  allowed  Mansoura  to  fall  into  ruins. 
So  the  travellers  went  with  their  patriarchal  old  guide  that 
afternoon  to  see  the  ruins  of  this  wonderful  city  built  by  that 
indefatigable  Sultan  Yakoub.  They  rolled  out  of  Tlemcen 
under  the  gate  of  Fez  toward  Morocco.  Outside  this  gate  is 
a  great  reservoir  built  by  a  king  of  the  Ouadites  for  a  favor- 
ite wife  to  sail  boats  upon.  When  they  had  gone  about  a 
kilometre  they  came  to  a  great,  beautiful  horseshoe  arch 
known  as  the  Bab-el-Khamis,  which  was  a  gate  in  the  famous 
walls  the  extent  and  size  of  which  the  travellers  much  won- 
dered at.  Two  kilometres  farther  out  they  could  better  see 
the  extent  of  these  walls.  On  a  hill  at  the  right  of  the  wall 
they  saw  the  great  minaret  which  has  remained  unmoved  to 
the  present  day.  They  got  out  at  the  foot  of  this  hill  and 
walked  up  a  steep  road  to  the  ruined  wall  around  the 
tower  which  stands  a  hundred  and  twenty-five  feet  high 
and  was  built  of  hewn  stone.  It  is  thought  to  be  the  finest 
monument  in  all  Algeria.  They  went  into  it  under  a  most 
beautiful  Moorish  arch  and  then  went  through  and  looked  up 
on  that  side  to  the  wonderful  minaret,  of  which  the  front  side 
is  nearly  perfect,  but  the  French  engineers  have  considerably 
repaired  and  strengthened  the  others.  The  minaret  is  di- 
vided into  three  stories  panelled  with  glazed  tiles,  and  carved 
onyx  pillars.  Looking  up  at  the  imposing  monument,  the 
Other-one  related  the  legend  of  the  building  of  the  mosque 
which  she  had  been  told  by  an  English  lady  at  the  hotel  the 
night  before.  It  seems  that  when  the  Sultan  Yakoub  was 
considering  the  building  of  the  mosque,  a  sort  of  competition 
was  held  on  the  plan,  and  a  Jew  and  an  Arab  were  the  win- 
ners. At  first  the  sultan  was  much  troubled  that  he  should 
have  to  deal  with  a  Jew  architect  for  the  entire  mosque. 

[138] 


dl 

B>-ai 

L.         ■;,■«.;  *K^.  aa^oM 

g 

'^ 


ffl 


THE    MINAEET    OF   ABOtj   YAKOUB'S 
MOSQtJE  AT  MANSOURA 


i^        ^^^H^HNr 

w    ■ 

•  '  •         -'^^^^^.^  ^ 

Jlf'/'        -: ----     f- 

.\  ,? ' .:^^■:;v••.•; : r^%7.;.?*"^'^ 

♦    ■      ^.1^*. 

z:i^^^m 

^^gpH 

BY  THE  WALLS   OF  MANSOURA 


A  TRIP  TO  TLEMCEN 

Then  a  happy  idea  struck  him.  He  commissioned  the  Arab 
to  build  the  interior  of  the  mosque  while  the  Jew  should  con- 
cern himself  with  the  exterior.  So  a  great  struggle  took  place 
between  the  two  with  all  the  art  and  ingenuity  of  the  two 
races  brought  into  the  construction  of  the  building.  From 
this  there  resulted  one  of  the  grandest  Arab  mosques  ever 
built.  Of  course  the  sultan  was  highly  delighted.  Time  went 
on,  but  the  architects  were  not  paid,  as  sometimes  happens  in 
modern  times.  When  there  was  some  endeavor  to  bring  this 
to  pass,  the  sultan  at  last  rewarded  the  Moslem  architect  with 
many  purses  of  gold,  but  he  condemned  the  dog  of  a  Jew  for 
daring  to  defile  the  holy  edifice  by  having  anything  to  do 
with  it  —  to  be  imprisoned  in  one  of  the  galleries  of  this  very 
minaret,  and  he  was  told  to  escape  if  he  could.  So  he  tried, 
making  himself  a  pair  of  wings  out  of  reeds  and  silks  and 
cords,  and  just  when  the  sun  was  sinking  behind  the  moun- 
tains, he  launched  himself  into  the  air  and  fell  to  the  bottom, 
smashing  his  skull  and  dying  at  once,  **  like  most  of  the  flying 
machine  experimenters  since  his  day,  and  probably  before,*' 
said  the  Commander  dryly. 

The  mosque  itself  is  in  ruins ;  nothing  but  portions  of  the 
wall  are  left.  It  is  said  to  have  been  a  magnificent  type  of 
of  mosque  of  the  fourteenth  century.  In  the  excavations,  the 
old  guide  told  the  Two  that  some  of  the  magnificent  columns 
of  onyx  in  the  museum  at  Tlemcen,  as  well  as  in  the  museum 
at  Algiers,  had  been  found.  The  travellers  rode  back  to 
Tlemcen  that  evening  by  the  sunset's  glow,  which  stained  the 
old  ruined  gray  walls  of  Sultan  Yakoub's  city  to  a  rich  color. 

The  next  morning  they  went  away  from  old  Tlemcen — • 
buried  in  its  groves  of  big  trees  and  hoary  olives  —  with  regret. 
The  Commander  had  directed  the  chauffeur  to  turn  sharp  to 
the  left  when  they  were  well  out  of  the  gate  of  Bou-Medine. 
**  We  are  going,"  he  said,  presently,  **  up  to  Oran  for  the 
night.     It  is  a  new  route,  and  I  want  to  see  Oran." 

**  It  will  be  uninteresting  enough  if  a  commercial  town  and 
monotonously  modern  after  charming  old  Tlemcen!  "  ex- 
claimed the  Other-one. 

[  139  ] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

That  night  they  were  very  comfortable  in  a  clean  and  quiet 
luxurious  modern  hotel,  and  the  Other-one  considered  that, 
after  all,  Oran,  if  modern,  was  a  rather  interesting  city. 
They  walked  down  to  the  Promenade  de  Letang,  in  the  late 
afternoon.  Here  it  is  all  planted  with  palm-trees,  pines,  fig- 
trees,  and  plane-trees,  and  there  are  lovely  gardens.  From 
the  balustrade,  looking  down  on  the  harbor,  one  gets  a  su- 
perb view,  not  only  of  the  busy  harbor  itself,  and  roadstead, 
but  across  the  lower  part  of  the  town  to  the  west,  where  rises 
the  Santa  Cruz  —  a  steep  spur  of  Mount  Mourdjadjo  —  where 
is  an  old  Spanish  fort,  its  reddish  gray  color  scarcely  leaving 
it  to  be  distinguished  from  the  rocks  on  which  it  was  built; 
also,  there  is  a  chapel  to  the  Virgin  here.  The  Djebel  Kahar, 
or  the  Mountain  of  the  Lions,  at  the  east,  with  its  conical  top, 
looks  something  like  Vesuvius,  and  the  more  so  now,  as  the 
setting  sun  was  tinging  its  rugged  cliffs  to  a  fiery  red. 

"  This  town,  though  it  is  not  much  of  an  Oriental  city,'* 
said  the  Commander,  as  they  leaned  over  the  balustrade  and 
looked  off  to  the  sea,  ''  ought  to  be  interesting  from  its  his- 
tory. When  the  Spaniards  stormed  the  town,  in  the  fifteenth 
century,  they  put  to  death  most  of  the  Moslem  population 
and  took  off  to  Spain  the  rest  as  captives.  They  found  much 
money  and  booty  here,  and  they  then  established  a  penal  col- 
ony. The  Moors  drove  out  the  Spaniards;  the  city  fell  into 
the  hands  of  the  Turks ;  and  lastly,  the  French  took  it,  and 
have  kept  it  ever  since.  It  is  said  that  it  used  to  be,  in  the 
old  Spanish  penal  times,  the  most  jolly  and  rollicking  place 
imaginable. ' ' 

*  *  The  view  from  here  is  certainly  beautiful  enough,  and  it 
is  delightful  to  stop  in  a  well  kept  modern  hotel,  no  matter 
how  much  one  may  disapprove  of  the  ugliness  of  the  modern 
French  town,'*  admitted  the  Other-one. 

The  next  evening  the  Motorists  arrived  in  Algiers,  very 
well  content  with  their  trip  to  Tlemcen,  and  more  eager  than 
before,  to  begin  their  journey  down  to  the  desert  and  the 
country  of  the  Mzabs. 

[140] 


CHAPTER  IX 

TO  LAGHOUAT  AND  THE  COUNTRY  OP  THE  MOZABITES:  WITH  A 
VISIT  TO  THE  CEDAR  FORESTS  AT  TENIET-EL-HAD  ON  THE 
RETURN 

A  MORNING  or  two  after  the  return  from  Tlemcen  the 
Motorists  were  off  early,  with  little  baggage  and  much 
gasoline,  and  full  of  eager  anticipations  of  seeing  the  highly 
interesting  country  of  the  Mzabs.  They  took  the  road  through 
busy  Hussein  Dey,  the  fascinating  native  life  ever  flowing 
along  with  them :  Arabs  in  creamy  or  dirt-colored  burnouses, 
and  Bedouins  striding  along  with  the  free  gait  of  the  country- 
man, or  riding  wee  donkeys,  or  driving  flocks  of  sheep  and 
goats,  the  air  filled  with  the  cries  of  the  animals  and  the  dust 
they  raised.  Sometimes  Bedouin  women  tramped  along  in 
classic  draperies  of  blue  caught  with  great  silver  fibulae,  with 
silver  anklets  that  clanked  on  their  brown  limbs  as  they 
walked,  a  kerchief  of  yellow  bound  over  their  locks, —  they 
were  always  a  joy  to  the  eye.  The  Motorists  went  past  great 
rolling  vineyards  stretching  to  the  horizon  line,  marvellous 
in  extent;  not  so  beautiful  now  as  they  would  be  later  in  the 
season,  when  all  their  brown  knotted  branches  would  be 
covered  with  soft  green  leaves.  Nearer  to  Boufarik  the  vine- 
yards grew  even  more  wonderful.  In  all  their  wide  extent 
there  was  not  a  weed  to  be  seen,  but  all  was  in  the  most  beau- 
tiful order;  and  this  had  been  done  as  if  by  magic,  for  no 
laborers  were  to  be  seen  in  any  of  these  vineyards  now. 

The  car  ran  through  this  town,  which  was  overflowing  with 
Arabs  even  at  this  early  hour.  Evidently  it  was  market  day, 
for  preparations  were  going  on  in  the  great  market  enclosure. 

Then  the  Motorists  went  on  to  the  great  gash  in  the  Atlas 
Mountains,  to  plunge  into  the  shadows  of  the  Gorge  of  the 
Chiffa,  between  the  mountains  rising  on  each  side  in  wooded 

[141] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

greenness.  Near  the  Ruisseau  des  Singes  the  Other-one  craned 
her  neck  to  see,  if  by  chance,  any  monkeys  were  out  for  break- 
fast or  a  bath  in  the  foaming  Chiffa.  Though  no  little  gray 
creatures  showed  themselves  in  the  trees,  a  huge  fellow 
scampered  across  the  road  and  plunged  down  the  declivity 
on  the  other  side  of  it.  Soon  the  road  began  to  mount  by 
loops  the  steep  mountain-side,  and  again  the  Motorists  were 
thrilled  by  the  grand  views  of  great  peaks  rising  from  green 
valleys ;  and  near  Medea,  ninety  kilometres  from  Algiers  and 
in  the  centre  of  a  famous  wine  district,  vineyards  were 
planted  wherever  vines  could  grow,  even  on  steep  mountain- 
sides, where  they  seemingly  must  slip  down,  with  all  the  earth 
in  which  they  grew,  to  join  the  other  vineyards  in  the  valleys. 

At  Medea,  three  thousand  feet  up,  they  stopped  for  lunch- 
eon at  a  small  hotel  where  a  cheerful  landlady  saw  to  it  that 
their  meal  was  the  best  the  house  could  offer,  set  out  on  a 
very  clean  cloth  in  a  very  clean,  poster-bedecked  dining-room. 

The  road  from  here  went  up,  then  down,  to  rise  again  over 
the  ridge  which  separates  the  valley  of  the  Isser  River  from 
that  of  the  Chelif ;  through  Berrouaghia,  a  dusty  town,  of  lit- 
tle interest  to  the  Motorists,  and  where  the  Arab  predomi- 
nated, and  where  the  French  colonist  seemed  not  so  conse- 
quential, but  more  preoccupied  and  anxious.  The  next  town, 
Boghari,  through  which  they  passed,  is  also  a  dusty-looking 
town.  It  is  an  important  commercial  centre,  however,  and 
the  pastoral  tribes  of  a  great  region  around  come  here  to  sell 
their  produce  or  to  exchange  it. 

*  *  The  road  there  to  the  right,  that  leads  up  over  the  moun- 
tains,'* said  the  Commander,  **  goes  to  Teniet-el-Had,  where 
are  the  forests  of  great  Lebanon  cedars.  I  hope  we  shall  be 
able  to  go  there  when  we  return.'' 

The  way  from  here  went  up  the  valley  of  the  Chelif,  now 
a  rich  green  with  the  luxuriant  barley  and  wheat  fields,  but 
in  a  dry  season  it  is  an  absolutely  sterile  country. 

'*  Do  you  notice  how  curious  the  hills  are  on  both  sides  of 
us  ?  "  said  the  Other-one ;  '  *  they  look  as  if  flattened  out  by 
hand  and  then  cut  into  fantastic  patterns. ' ' 

[142] 


COUNTRY  OF  THE  MOZABITES 

After  a  while  the  road  ran  down  on  a  great  desolate  plain, 
stretching  to  the  horizon  line,  monotonous  and  melancholy, 
with  very  little  vegetation.  The  sun  was  hot,  and  the  way  be- 
came wearisome,  when,  not  far  from  them,  the  motorists  saw 
the  gleam  of  a  lake  and  feathery  palms  waving.  The  sight 
was  refreshing,  and  Adrian  put  the  car  to  a  better  speed  over 
the  rather  rough  road.  Alas !  the  palms  and  lake  faded  away. 
It  was  nothing  but  a  mirage. 

Beyond,  they  came  into  the  region  of  the  alfa,  or  esparto 
grass,  as  the  Spaniards  call  it.  The  gray-green  bunches, 
writhing  in  the  winds,  stretched  away  as  far  as  the  eye  could 
reach. 

**  I  have  been  reading  Fromentin*s  *  Summer  on  the  Sa- 
hara.' I  picked  the  book  up  at  the  hotel  yesterday.  It  is 
delightful.  He  went  over  this  very  route  and  describes  the 
aJfa  grass,  which  he  detested, —  and  really  it  is  a  very  uncom- 
fortable-looking grass.  However,  according  to  him,  it  is  a 
very  useful  plant  to  the  natives  here.  They  make  mats  of  it, 
pots  for  milk  and  water,  big  plaques  for  food,  and  even  the 
horses  will  eat  it ;  which  seems  strange, — it  looks  so  wiry  and 
like  waving  snakes.*' 

And  they  went  on  for  miles  in  the  alfa.  At  Bou-Cedraia 
they  were  preparing  great  rolls  of  it  for  shipment,  and  camels 
and  donkeys  were  being  loaded  with  the  rolls  or  standing  pa- 
tiently around,  awaiting  their  turns.  Emphasizing  the  deso- 
lation, further  on  were  some  pistachio-trees  which  the  natives 
call  hetoum,  "When  the  travellers  saw  them,  with  their 
straggly  branches  cropping  out  here  and  there,  the  Other-one 
had  something  from  Fromentin  to  tell  the  Commander. 

**  He  writes,*'  she  said,  **  that  they  are  a  providential  tree 
in  this  region,  though  now  they  look  barren  enough ;  but  in 
the  heat  of  summer,  on  the  desert  and  in  places  where  they 
grow,  a  large  tree  with  wide  spreading  branches  will  give  the 
most  delightful  shade,  like  a  huge  parasol.  Some  are  five  or 
six  feet  in  diameter.  They  have -little  berries  in  clusters, 
which  are  slightly  acid,  and  which  in  the  absence  of  anything 
else,  quench  the  thirst." 

[143] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

Toward  sunset,  the  travellers  came  to  the  caravansary  of 
Guelt-es-Stel  where  they  were  to  pass  the  night.  It  is  situated 
between  low  hills,  barren  of  all  vegetation  but  a  few  thuyas, 
—  a  kind  of  cypress  common  in  North  Africa.  It  is  a  sad  and 
dreary  region,  but,  after  all,  fascinating  in  a  way,  from  its 
very  desolation. 

The  caravansary  is  a  long,  low  building,  windowless  and 
doorless,  except  the  great  entrance  way,  with  bastions  on  the 
corners,  having  slits  in  them  for  reconnoitring,  or  through 
which  to  point  guns  at  an  attacking  enemy.  It  is  the  style  of 
fortified  caravansaries,  or  hordj,  as  the  natives  call  them, 
which  are  seen  everywhere  on  the  desert  and  remote  places 
in  North  Africa,  and  which  served  in  troublous  times  with 
the  tribes,  as  a  place  of  shelter  for  the  colonists  and  as  a  halt- 
ing place  for  those  on  the  road ;  which  purpose  they  still  serve 
for  travellers  and  their  animals,  in  those  places  where  the 
railways  do  not  run  and  there  are  no  hotels. 

Two  or  three  Arabs  lounged  out  from  the  caravansary,  with 
a  robust  young  Frenchman,  who  in  answer  to  the  Comman- 
der's inquiry,  said  this  was  the  caravansary  hotel,  and  there 
were  accommodations  for  travellers.  The  car  rolled  under 
the  great  gate  into  a  wide,  much  littered-up  courtyard  with 
stables  at  the  farther  end  and  the  living-rooms  near  the  en- 
trance. A  rosy,  dark-haired,  and  plump  young  woman 
hurried  out  of  a  side  door  with  two  or  three  natives  trailing 
after  her.  She  greeted  the  newcomers  as  if  they  were  the 
most  welcome  guests  in  the  land,  and  they  found,  much  to 
their  surprise  and  gratification,  a  very  comfortable  and  clean 
lodging  for  the  night.  They  had  a  very  good  supper  in  a 
little  dining-room,  which,  in  its  chromo  or  two,  and  gay 
posters,  showed  a  pathetic  attempt,  the  Other-one  thought,  of 
the  pretty  young  patronne  to  get  a  little  of  what  she  con- 
sidered beauty  into  her  surroundings,  also  into  the  little  gar- 
den at  one  side,  with  its  two  or  three  straggling  rosebushes 
and  a  few  other  rather  forlorn-looking  plants. 

The  Two  slept  that  night  in  one  of  the  bastions  which  had 
been  fitted  up  into  a  clean  little  bedroom,  with  two  small  beds 

[144] 


BEDOUIN  WOMAN  AND  CHILD 


LEAVING  THE  CARAVANSARY  OF  GUELT-ES-STEL 


COUNTRY  OF   THE   MOZABITES 

covered  with  gay  rugs,  and  little  red  curtains  hung  over 
the  slits  in  the  walls.  Before  she  went  to  bed  that  night, 
the  Other-one  wandered  out  into  the  courtyard  under  the 
brilliant  stars  of  the  African  night,  to  chat  with  the  rosy 
patronne;  she  had  told  her,  with  a  sigh,  of  the  fate  that  had 
befallen  the  occupants  of  the  caravansary  when  there  was 
trouble  with  the  native  tribes  some  years  before.  The  hordj 
had  been  attacked  and  every  one  here  had  been  killed  by  the 
natives.  So  the  Lady  felt  a  trifle  nervous  when  she  went  to 
retire  in  her  bastion,  and  in  the  night,  above  the  weird  sigh- 
ing of  the  wind  through  the  open  slits,  she  fancied  she  heard 
stealthy  footsteps  and  suppressed  guttural  voices.  * '  But 
it  is  only  a  trick  the  wind  has,**  she  thought.  Then  she  fell 
sound  asleep  to  awaken  in  the  morning  with  a  tropical  sun 
streaming  in  through  the  openings  in  the  bastion,  and  the 
noise  of  arriving  and  departing  freight  wagons  in  the 
courtyard. 

When  the  travellers  went  into  this,  prepared  for  depart- 
ure, they  found  the  Arab  and  French  freighters  cooking 
their  cans  of  coffee  over  small  charcoal  fires,  and  tearing 
up  the  round  loaves  of  black  Arabian  bread  into  chunks, 
preparatory  to  breakfasting.  The  pretty,  rosy  patronne  and 
her  robust  young  husband  bade  the  departing  travellers  an 
almost  affectionate  farewell,  and  they  rolled  away,  very  well 
content  with  their  first  night  in  a  caravansary. 

**  Everything  was  as  clean  as  wax,'*  observed  the  Other- 
one.  **  The  rosy,  healthy-looking  young  woman  is  of  French 
parentage  and  was  born  in  Algiers,  where  she  has  always 
lived  until  she  married  and  came  here,  a  few  years  ago.  She 
seems  happy  and  contented  enough  in  this  barren,  monoton- 
ous place,  but  she  undoubtedly  loves  her  husband  very  much, 
—  and  love,**  added  the  sentimental  Other-one,  **  makes  even 
the  barren  desert  a  paradise.'* 

The  road  ran  down  by  some  vast  salt  lakes,  now  nearly 
dried  up  and  glistening  with  their  crust  of  salt.  Now  the 
long  desert  rolled  on,  its  sandy  expanse  unrelieved  by  any 
vegetation  as  far  as  the  eye  could  reach,  the  dunes  of  sand 

[145] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

changed  incessantly  by  the  winds.  Beyond,  almost  lost  in 
the  blue  of  the  horizon  and  running  to  the  east  and  west, 
was  the  line  of  the  Djebel  Sahari. 

*'  There  is  one  place  we  must  not  fail  to  see/*  said  the 
Lady,  who  had  been  looking  in  her  **  Cook's  Guide,'*  while 
they  were  moving  on  as  best  they  could  over  the  rather  dif- 
ficult road;  '*  and  that  is  the  Rocker  de  Sel,  or  Salt  Moun- 
tain. We  might  pass  the  road  that  leads  to  it  without 
special  notice.  The  mountain  lies  about  two  kilometres  from 
the  main  road.  It  is  about  a  mile  and  a  half  in  circum- 
ference, through  which  rivulets  trickle  which  are  impreg- 
nated with  salt,  and  the  sides  of  the  rock  are  strewn  with 
iron  pyrites,  gypsum,  and  stones  of  various  colors.  Owing 
to  the  action  of  the  atmosphere  and  the  dissolving  of  the  salt 
by  the  underground  water,  large  portions  of  the  mountain 
fall  in  from  time  to  time,  leaving  fantastic  hollows  and  crev- 
ices, in  many  of  which  thousands  of  pigeons  find  a  home. 
Fromentin  says  of  the  Rocher  de  Sel,  *  It  is  a  heap  of  strange 
things  in  all  the  possible  tints  of  gray,  from  deep  lilac  gray 
to  the  pale  and  most  faded-out  tint  —  heaped  up,  superim- 
posed, and  forming  a  mountain  with  two  heads.  All  around, 
this  mountain  seems  to  have  had  convulsions,  it  is  so 
upraised,  cleft,  and  split  up  in  every  way.  It  is  not  beau- 
tiful; it  is  formidable.'  '* 

The  travellers  came,  after  a  time,  to  the  great,  gray,  fan- 
tastic mass  at  the  opening  of  the  passage  that  the  Oued 
Melah  has  cut  in  the  Djebel  Sahari,  the  avant  garde  of  the 
Ouled  Nail  range.  The  Commander  directed  the  chauffeur  to 
run  over  in  the  country  road  as  near  as  they  could  approach 
the  mountain.  They  stopped  not  far  from  a  small  cabin 
where  some  soiled-looking  men  lounged,  and  a  woman  bear- 
ing a  baby  came  slowly  out  to  the  car.  In  response  to  the 
Lady's  inquiry  she  said  she  could  go  with  them,  and  that 
it  was  an  easy  climb  to  go  up  and  look  into  the  pits 
where  the  salt,  free  from  dirt,  showed  white  as  snow.  So 
the  Two  followed  her  up  a  zig-zag  path  on  the  great,  gray, 
multicolored  mass,  where  they  looked  down  into  deep  wells, 

[146] 


COUNTRY  OF  THE  MOZABITES 

the  sides  sparkling  with  the  white  salt  crystals,  and  the 
depths  far  below,  a  white  mass,  like  liquid  plaster.  As  they 
stood  on  the  edge  of  one  well  where  they  looked  down  from  a 
dizzy  height,  the  woman  began  to  tell  them  a  gruesome  story 
to  the  effect  that  about  three  years  before,  a  French  officer  had 
come  here  with  his  wife  and  one  of  his  aides.  They  had 
climbed  to  this  very  pit  and,  standing  on  the  edge,  **  as 
Madame  and  Monsieur  are,'*  they  lost  their  balance  and 
fell  in. 

**  Horrible!  "  exclaimed  the  Other-one.  **  Were  they  never 
recovered?  " 

**  No,  Madame,  never!     It  was  impossible!  " 

**  Come  away!  *'  cried  the  lady,  clutching  the  Commander 
by  the  arm ;  *  *  come  at  once  from  this  terrible  place ! '  * 

And  they  hurried  down  and  off  to  the  car,  the  woman  run- 
ning hastily  behind  them  after  she  had  stopped  to  snatch 
up  two  or  three  lumps  of  the  crude  salt  lying  in  a  hollow  by 
the  road,  which  she  thrust  into  the  car,  sprinkling  the  others 
with  the  white  crystals.  The  Other-one  sat  silent  for  some- 
time as  the  car  went  on.  Then  she  said,  thoughtfully,  **  If 
the  officer  and  his  wife  were  young  and  handsome  and  loved 
one  another  very  much,  it  was  not  so  bad  to  be  preserved 
together  in  the  salt,  forever, —  always  young  and  beautiful, 
never  to  become  gray,  wrinkled,  rheumatic,  and  —  *  * 

**  Absurd!*'  laughed  the  Commander.  **  Even  a  salt 
mountain  makes  you  sentimental!'* 

The  wind  began  to  rise,  now,  and  the  road  to  run  up  low 
hills.  They  saw  afar  the  pines  and  oaks  on  the  northern 
flanks  of  the  Ouled  Nail  Mountains,  but  the  southern  were 
completely  barren,  and  there  were  no  trees  to  be  seen  on  the 
plain.  Near  noon  the  motorists  ran  into  Djelfa,  a  rude  little 
town  like  a  man  with  unkempt  beard  and  hair.  Their  eyes 
were  blinded  by  the  dust  arising  in  clouds,  both  from  the 
wind  sweeping  through  the  long  street  and  the  many  freight 
wagons  moving  through  it.  Here  at  one  edge  of  the  town, 
was  a  big  Arab  fair  in  full  ebullition,  hundreds  of  white- 
bumoused  natives  struggling  with  hundreds  of  sheep,  goats, 

[147] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

and  oxen.  And  the  clamors  of  all  rent  the  air.  The  car  pulled 
up  at  a  poor-looking  restaurant  on  the  street,  and  the  travel- 
lers entered  it  reluctantly,  seeing  small  promise  from  the 
surroundings  of  much  refreshment.  They  passed  through 
three  or  four  rooms  which  seemed  to  be  in  grades;  the  first 
occupied  by  sodden,  unwashed  teamsters,  the  second  by 
sheiks  and  other  grave-looking  Arabs,  and  the  other  rooms 
by  fine  looking  French  officers  and  one  or  two  tourists.  A 
wild,  hard-worked  waiter  was  endeavoring  to  wait  on  every- 
body at  once,  the  officers  always  having  the  preference;  so 
our  Motorists  got  what  comfort  they  could  out  of  some  half- 
raw  eggs  and  some  scraps  of  tough  mutton,  finishing  off  with 
a  handful  of  dusty  dates  and  some  of  those  husky,  throat- 
scraping  crackers  or  biscuits  that  are  supplied  as  a  delicious 
dessert  in  hotels  in  country  places. 

On  they  rolled  again,  shaking  the  dust  of  Djelfa  from  off 
their  car. 

**  If  we  had  known  we  were  to  take  this  trip,  before  going 
to  Bou  Saada,"  said  the  Commander,  '*  we  could  have  gone 
there  from  here, —  one  hundred  and  twenty  kilometres  only, 
—  though  if  it  rained,  we  would  have  found  the  road  difficult 
near  Bou  Saada,  as  there  are  some  rivers  to  cross  where  there 
are  no  bridges.'' 

**  The  mountains  all  around  make  me  feel  as  if  this  were 
not  the  true  desert.  I  have  imagined  the  desert  nothing  but 
mounds  and  wastes  of  sand.*' 

**  We  are  certainly  well  on  the  edge  of  it,"  returned  the 
Commander,  *'  and  it  is  by  no  means  all  a  flat  and  sandy 
plain.    There  are  mountains  as  well  as  sand-dunes." 

It  was  late  in  the  afternoon  when  the  palm  oasis  and  the 
white  buildings  of  Laghouat  showed  up  against  the  vivid 
blue  sky,  and  the  road  went  down  over  a  long  flat  of  sand, 
across  a  wooden  bridge  laid  on  stringers  so  that  vehicles  could 
not  sink  in  the  sand  of  the  bed  of  the  Oued  Mzab,  which 
is  joined  here  by  the  Oued  Metlili.  The  way  ran  into  town  by 
the  round  hill  of  the  Chapeau  de  Gendarme,  and  then 
on  through  an  Arab  cemetery  —  through  one  of  these  most 

[148] 


THE  JOLLY  ARAB  AT  THE 
CARAVANSARY  OP  TELREMPT 


THE  MOSQUE  AT  LAGHOUAT 


THE   SOEUES  BLANCHES   AND   THEIR   PUPILS   IN   A   COURT- 
YARD OF  THE  SCHOOL,  GHARDAIA 


MARKET  DAY  IN  THE  PUBLIC  SQUARE  AT  GHARDAIA 


COUNTRY  OF   THE   MOZABITES 

of  the  Arab  towns  are  approached  —  and  the  Motorists  came 
to  Laghouat,  built  on  two  low  hills  with  military  buildings 
crowning  each,  an  outpost  of  civilization  on  the  edge  of  the 
desert.  As  the  car  drew  up  to  the  high  walls,  the  travellers 
saw  through  a  long  straight  street  to  a  great  white  mosque 
with  a  minaret  rising  high  from  it.  All  around,  inside  and 
out,  are  magnificent  palm-gardens,  and  gardens  flourish  in  the 
greatest  luxuriance  here,  all  seeming  the  more  green  and 
grateful  to  the  visitors  in  contrast  to  the  barren  wastes  of 
sand  over  which  they  had  been  travelling  all  the  hot  day. 

The  plan  of  the  Commander  was  to  remain  in  Laghouat 
for  rest,  and  for  viewing  the  town  a  day,  and  moreover  he 
had  a  letter  of  introduction  to  the  Bach-agha,  or  Governor,  of 
the  Lakdaars,  a  big  and  influential  tribe  inhabiting  this 
region. 

*  *  No  matter  what  you  do  or  where  you  go,  be  sure  to 
accept  the  Bach-agha *s  invitation  to  luncheon,**  said  the  gen- 
tleman who  had  enthused  the  Commander  to  make  this  trip 
to  the  Mozabite  country.  **  If  you  present  a  letter  of  intro- 
duction to  him,  he  will  certainly  invite  you  there,  and  it  will 
be  an  experience  such  as  you  have  never  had  before  in  your 
life;  but  you  may  be  ill  after  an  Arab  meal,  for  you  must 
partake  of  every  dish.  No  matter  what  it  is,  it  is  etiquette 
not  to  refuse  anything.  Your  wife  can  see  the  harem,  also, 
and  some  of  the  women  are  very  good  looking,  ray  wife,  who 
saw  them,  says.  It  will  be  much  appreciated  if  you  take 
presents  for  them,  especially  chocolate  bon-bons.** 

The  travellers  descended  at  the  rather  attractive-looking 
hotel  in  Laghouat,  where  a  gigantic  landlady  was  standing 
on  the  piazza  with  her  small,  wiry  Italian  husband.  She 
looked  like  a  huge  freighter  with  a  small  tug-boat  puffing 
around  it.  She  did  not  evince  any  particular  joy  at  seeing 
the  travellers,  but  finally  condescended  to  toil  up  the  steep 
stairs  to  show  them  a  room  which  did  not  lack  for  some  com- 
forts, but  could  have  been  a  little  better  swept  and  gar- 
nished. The  Commander  gave  his  orders  to  have  his  letter 
forwarded  to  the  Bach-agha. 

[149] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

*'  Of  course/*  said  the  Other-one,  *'  he  *11  rush  right  down 
here  to  invite  us  to  luncheon  to-morrow/* 

What  was  the  disappointment  of  the  Two  when  word 
came  back  that  the  Bach-agha  had  gone  to  Algiers  and  would 
not  return  for  some  days. 

*'  Just  our  luck!  **  exclaimed  the  Other-one;  **  and  I  was 
so  anxious  to  see  a  real  Arab  house  and  harem,  and  think  of 
all  those  chocolate  bon-bons !  ' ' 

''Never  mind!**  returned  the  Commander.  **  I  dare 
say  if  we  were  to  go  to  the  luncheon  we  should  be  laid  up 
with  indigestion  for  a  week ;  as  to  the  bon-bons,  give  them  to 
the  Bedouin  women  as  quickly  as  possible!*' 

The  next  day  the  travellers  wandered  around  Laghouat 
leisurely,  accompanied  by  a  young  and  ambitious  native  to 
show  them  the  way.  There  was  not  much  to  view  in  the  town, 
of  especial  interest  to  the  eager  sight-seer,  but  there  was  the 
flavor  of  a  strange  and  unusual  life  of  a  town  far  away  from 
the  great  highways  of  the  world.  The  European  town  is 
built  in  French  style,  with  a  square  around  which  are  the 
military  and  civil  buildings,  low  buildings  with  arcades. 
The  Two  climbed  up  by  the  great  square  mosque  to  the  hill 
where  is  the  military  hospital,  and  looked  off  on  the  native 
town  at  one  side,  with  its  flat-roofed  houses  and  narrow 
streets,  and  off  on  the  other  to  the  picturesque  mass  of 
feathery  palms  of  the  oasis,  of  thirty  thousand  date  trees, 
with  pomegranate,  fig,  peach,  and  apricot  trees,  and  vines; 
and  beyond  all  were  the  gray,  rolling,  barren  wastes. 

The  Commander  asked  about  the  blankets  said  to  be  woven 
here,  and  the  ambitious  boy  gladly  took  them  off  to  the 
Soeurs  Blanches,  who  were  established  here  and  veritable 
angels,  teaching  the  girls  and  women  how  to  sew  and  weave, 
and  caring  for  the  sick.  In  a  clean  and  snow-white  build- 
ing, two  gentle  Sisters  clad  in  the  white  garments  of  their 
order,  received  the  strangers  and  took  them  into  the  school 
where  several  girls,  from  the  jet-black  Soudanese  to  the 
pale  olive-colored  Arab,  were  weaving  rugs  and  from  behind 
the   looms   looking   shyly   at   the   newcomers.     There   were 

[150] 


COUNTRY  OF  THE  MOZABITES 

tiny  creatures,  too,  who  were  picking  away  at  and  carding 
bunches  of  wool.  The  Commander  rather  disapproved  of  the 
aniline  dyes  used  for  the  rugs,  but  invested  in  two  or  three 
of  them  to  help  out  the  sweet  and  patient  sisters  in  their 
work. 

The  next  morning  the  travellers  took  up  their  line  of  march 
again,  for  Ghardaia, —  the  principal  city  of  the  Mozabites,  two 
hundred  kilometres  away, —  under  the  torrid  rays  of  the  sun 
into  an  even  more  barren  country  than  the  one  they  had 
passed  through  the  day  before.  The  road  was  across  a  wide 
desert  running  to  the  horizon-line  with  scanty,  burned-up 
herbage,  and  occasional  terebinth-trees,  and  farther  on, — 
greatly  to  the  astonishment  of  the  Commander, —  they  came 
to  a  level  place  and  at  one  side  a  smaller  road  smoothly  swept 
of  all  stones,  and  a  sign  up:  **  For  automobiles!  " 

*  *  Well !  *  *  exclaimed  the  Commander.  *  *  If  this  is  not 
the  most  surprising  thing  I  have  encountered  in  my  life !  A 
private  automobile  road  way  down  on  the  desert!  It  must 
take  labor  to  keep  it  free  from  sand.** 

The  car  ran  on  this  very  good  road  for  some  distance,  then 
dropped  off  again  to  a  sandy  and  uneven  one.  Then  farther 
on,  where  it  was  practicable,  was  another  stretch  of  *  *  private 
automobile  road,**  and  so  on,  at  intervals,  greatly  rejoicing 
the  chauffeur  as  well  as  the  Commander. 

The  sun  was  beating  down  hotly  when  the  travellers  came, 
at  noon,  down  to  one  of  the  depressions  of  the  desert,  or 
daya,  where  were  growing  many  large  terebinth-trees.  Here, 
on  a  low  hill  is  a  large  caravansary  or  bordj,  that  of  Tel- 
rempt,  where  one  is  certain  to  find  refreshment  for  man  and 
beast,  if  not  for  automobiles;  though  our  travellers  needed 
not  the  last,  for  they  had  found  much  provision  of  gasoline 
at  Djelfa  which  the  stage  had  deposited  there  'for  them, 
ordered  sent  before  by  the  always  provident  Commander. 
The  long  plain  walls  of  the  bordj  looked  lonely  enough,  and 
no  one  stood  outside  the  big  entrance  door  to  greet  the  trav- 
ellers. However,  as  the  door  stood  wide  open,  Adrian  drove 
the  car  in  at  once  and  stopped  it  in  the  largest  and  most 

1151] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

homelike  of  courtyards,  with  rooms  and  stables  around  it. 
A  colony  of  ducks,  geese,  and  chickens,  were  quacking, 
clucking,  and  picking  up  crumbs  in  the  bright  sunlight 
streaming  into  the  court.  At  a  far  corner,  two  calves  thrust 
their  innocent-looking  heads  out  of  some  pens  and  lowed, 
and  there  was  the  air,  all  around,  of  a  farmyard  in  New 
England.  Two  or  three  Arabs  lounged  on  the  ground  in  the 
shade  of  the  walls  near  the  kitchen,  out  of  which  hurried  a 
short,  plump,  and  jolly  Arab,  followed  by  a  tall  patriarchal 
one.  Both  welcomed  the  travellers  with  beaming  smiles  and 
bestirred  themselves. —  the  plump  man  to  the  kitchen,  there 
to  concoct  an  excellent  luncheon,  and  the  other  to  a  small 
dining-room  at  one  side,  to  lay  a  white  cloth  and  prepare 
otherwise  for  the  travellers.  The  jolly  cook  proved  to  be  the 
brother  of  the  patron  of  the  caravansary,  and  to  have  been 
once  the  chef  of  a  French  army  officer  who  was  an  epicure. 
The  Arab  greatly  enjoyed  the  delight  and  praises  of  the 
Commander  for  the  luncheon,  but  protested  if  he  had  known 
they  were  coming,  that  the  luncheon  would  have  been  a  mar- 
vel in  quality  and  variety.  *  *  Now, '  *  and  he  gave  a  real 
French  shrug,  **  it  was  just  passable.'' 

The  Other-one  happened  to  mention  her  desire  to  eat 
cous-coiis,  of  which  she  had  never  tasted,  though  the  national 
dish  of  the  country  in  which  she  was  travelling.  To  learn 
this  made  the  Arab  cook  indeed  a  wretchedly  unhappy  man, 
for  there  was  nothing  in  the  world  like  it,  and  especially 
would  the  eating  of  it  give  force  and  keep  one  young.  But 
an  idea  struck  him.  Monsieur  would  stop  on  the  return  trip ; 
then,  if  he,  the  cook,  could  know  the  day  and  hour,  there 
would  be  such  a  luncheon,  and  such  cous-cous  —  but  French 
words  failed  him  and  he  broke  into  guttural  Arabic. 

The  Motorists  departed  from  the  cheerful  caravansary  and 
the  jolly  cook  of  Telrempt  with  regret.  These  encounters 
with  some  of  the  kindly  and  simple  people  of  the  country 
were  among  the  true  delights  of  the  motor  trip. 

Beyond,  they  came  into  a  more  desolate,  a  more  dreary, 
and  a  more  barren  country  than  any  in  which  they  had  ever 

[152] 


COUNTRY  OF  THE  MOZABITES 

travelled.  Yesterday's  trip  even,  as  they  looked  back  to  it, 
seemed  a  garden  of  delight  in  comparison  to  this  savage, 
insistently  ill-favored  land,  with  —  as  the  road  wound  on  — 
great  scarred,  distorted,  calcined  rocks,  under  a  torrid  sun, 
and  heaped  and  piled  in  monstrous  masses  on  each  side  or 
scattered  everywhere  on  the  barren  land,  where  no  trace  of 
even  the  poorest  desert  shrub  showed.  Still  there  was  a 
fascination  in  all  the  savage  dreariness  around,  and  it  was 
pathetic  to  see  to  what  terrible  desolation  nature  could  con- 
demn the  country  she  loved  not. 

Then  came  a  chehka  —  a  network  of  ravines  cut  out  by  the 
rains  —  of  mortal  sadness,  and  the  road  was  strangled  in  a 
narrow  way,  and  there  was  only  the  view  of  the  yellow  rocks 
rising  above.  Oppressed  with  the  gloomy  sadness  of  the 
route,  the  Other-one  roused  herself  to  ask  the  Commander 
if  he  could  tell  her  more  about  the  Mozabites  and  their 
country. 

**  I  have  already  told  you,'*  he  said  in  response,  **  some- 
thing about  them, —  which  information  the  gentlemen  I  met 
in  Algiers  gave  me, —  that  they  are  considered  heretics  by 
the  orthodox  Mohammedans.  This  religious  sect  dominated 
Western  Africa  in  the  tenth  century,  and  lived  in  the  region 
around  Tiaret,  not  far  from  Oran.  They  were  driven  away 
from  there  and  went  to  Ouargla,  which  is  far  down  on  the 
desert  below  Biskra.  From  here  they  were  also  chased  away. 
Then  they  came  way  out  here  in  the  heart  of  this  barren 
and  sterile  region,  and  they  have  created,  by  force  of  hard 
laboi^  and  the  most  ingenious  industry,  actual  oases.  They 
have  dug  thousands  of  wells,  for  there  is  no  surface  water 
here,  nor  any  other,  only  in  case  of  rare  rainfalls,  when  the 
water  is  retained  and  distributed  by  barrages.  It  seems  the 
Mozabites  are  great  traders,  and  emigrate  temporarily,  but 
soon  return  to  their  native  land.  There  is  a  proverb  which 
declares  that  it  takes  five  Arabs  to  get  the  best  of  an  Algerian 
Jew,  and  five  Jews  to  master  a  Mozabite.  There  are  about 
thirty  or  forty  thousand  of  them  in  this  country,  he  says, 
and  a  mortal  hatred  exists  between  them  and  the  other  Mus- 

[153] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

sulmans,  but  generally  they  have  been  on  good  terms  with 
the  French,  and  the  Mozabites  pay  them  an  annual  tribute/' 
Here  the  Commander  looked  at  his  note-book.  ''  There  are 
several  towns  and  oases  —  Ghardaia,  which  is  the  capital, 
Beni-Isguen,  El  Ateuf,  Metlili,  Berrian,  and  Guerrara.*' 

The  road  now  came  down  to  the  Oued  Soudane  and  then 
ran  through  a  rocky  valley,  with  scarred  cliffs  on  either  side. 
At  the  end  of  this  there  arose  to  the  astonished  view  of  the 
travellers,  a  great  forest  of  the  greenest  palms  they  had  ever 
seen  (contrasting  with  the  barren  region  they  had  traversed) 
and  which  they  thought,  for  a  moment,  to  be  a  mirage;  but 
it  proved  to  be  the  oasis  of  the  first  village  of  the  Mzabs, 
Berrian,  and  they  soon  saw  the  town  itself,  rising  in  a  sort 
of  pyramid  on  a  hill  and  crowned  with  a  curious,  very  ugly 
minaret,  square  and  inclining,  and  tapering  toward  the  top. 

Before  reaching  the  village  they  heard  the  grinding  and 
saw  one  of  the  curious  Mozabite  wells.  A  large  framework, 
with  several  crossbars,  was  raised  above  it;  a  long  rope  over 
a  pulley  running  from  this,  and  two  mules  hitched  to  it  at 
one  end ;  at  the  other,  a  great  bucket  of  cow-skin  which,  when 
the  mules  walked  up  to  the  well,  dropped  into  the  water  far 
below,  and  when  they  walked  away  to  the  end  of  the  path, 
the  bag,  by  an  ingenious  contrivance,  emptied  itself  into  a 
ditch  running  away  toward  the  garden  or  oasis  to  be  watered. 
When  the  car  came  under  the  walls  of  Berrian,  Adrian 
stopped  it  at  a  small  caravansary  outside  them,  to  fill  up  with 
water,  for  the  engine  had  heated  up  running  over  the  long, 
rocky,  sandy  road  that  afternoon.  The  travellers  ran  away 
from  the  green  oasis  of  Berrian  and  plunged  anew  into  an 
even  more  wild  and  rocky  region  than  before,  and  still  more 
great  calcined  rocks,  and  more  desolate  and  dreary  wastes. 

It  was  after  dark  when  they  came  to  the  top  of  a  hill 
where  a  great  fort  loomed  up,  and  down  below  they  could 
see  the  lights  of  Ghardaia  gleaming,  especially  one  bright 
light  which  flashed  to  and  fro  as  if  someone  were  swinging 
it  wildly  as  a  signal.  They  ran  down  the  long  hill  across 
the  sand  of  the  Mzab  River,  and  went  up  a  not  too  brilliantly 

[154] 


COUNTRY  OF  THE   MOZABITES 

lighted  street,  stopping  before  a  white  hotel,  with  double  bal- 
conies to  which  vines  clung.  On  the  lower  one  some  soldiers 
were  having  a  very  good  time,  indeed,  playing  cards  and 
drinking  wine  at  little  tables.  A  cheerful  landlord  stood  to 
greet  the  motorists,  with  the  support  of  several  curious  Moza- 
bites.  It  was  he  who  had  swung  the  lantern  to  let  the  travel- 
lers know  they  were  expected,  as  the  Commander  had  tele- 
graphed, and  he  delivered  them  into  the  hands  of  a  very 
friendly  and  sociable  young  woman,  who  took  them  up  to 
rooms  which  were  surprisingly  clean.  The  floors  were  cov- 
ered with  bright  Mozabite  rugs,  and  the  only  door  opened 
into  the  balcony  whence  one  could  see  brilliant  stars 
scintillating  in  the  dark  blue  sky.  When  they  had  washed 
the  sand  from  their  eyes,  the  sociable  young  woman  took 
them  into  a  nice,  home-like  little  room  where,  talking  volubly 
all  the  time,  she  served  them  (between  times  attending  to 
some  haughty  and  exclusive  officers  in  a  private  room)  with 
a  very  good  supper  indeed. 

In  the  morning  the  travellers  rose  with  the  pleasant  con- 
sciousne^  that  some  novel  experiences  were  in  store  for  them. 
Asking  for  a  guide  around  the  town,  a  tall  lank  Arab  pre- 
sented himself  and  took  charge  of  them  in  the  most  busi- 
ness-like way.  They  came  out  of  the  shady  balconies  of  the 
hotel  into  a  very  hot  sun  and  dazzlingly  white  streets  and 
houses.  There  stretched  away,  however,  before  the  hotel  — 
fenced  from  the  road  —  a  very  green  garden,  to  the  hill  on 
which  the  fort  showed,  the  reveille  from  which  they  had 
heard  in  the  early  morning  with  the  grinding  music  of  the 
wells.  One  of  the  wells  watered  the  green  garden.  The 
guide,  who  was  another  Mohamed  to  add  to  their  list, —  and 
who  was  not  a  Mozabite,  but  an  Arab,  he  hastened  to  tell 
them, —  said  it  was  market  day,  and  they  would  go  first  to 
the  square  where  the  market  was  held,  and  where  they 
must  get  permission  of  the  sheik  to  visit  the  mosque,  which 
is  at  the  top  of  the  hill  rising  above  the  river  Mzab. 
Like  all  the  other  Mozabite  towns,  Ghardaia  is  in  the  shape 
of  a  pyramid.     The  houses  are  built  one  upon  another  in 

1 155  ] 


A   MOTOR   FLIGHT 

stages;  the  terraces  are  upheld  by  arcades  which  open  out. 
It  is  like  a  bee-hive.  It  comprises  three  distinct  quarters, 
isolated,  one  from  another,  by  walls.  The  culminating  point 
has  the  mosque  with  the  curious  square,  tapering  minaret, 
characteristic  of  Mozabite  towns. 

They  went  up  a  narrow  white  street  filled  with  a  mass 
of  human  beings  and  donkeys,  through  which  the  lean  guide 
pushed  his  way,  paying  little  heed  —  as  others,  walking  or 
riding  mules,  did  also  —  to  venders  of  green  vegetables  squat- 
ting by  the  side  of  the  street,  and  nearly  trampling  over 
them.  This  street  opened  into  a  great  square  surrounded  by 
arcades.  Of  all  the  sights  and  crowds  that  the  travellers  had 
yet  seen,  this  they  now  saw  was  the  most  astonishing  for 
numbers.  The  large  white  square  was  filled  with  a  tumul- 
tuous, seething  jumble  of  natives,  camels,  sheep,  and  goats, 
all  ebullient  and  bubbling  with  excitement;  the  air  was  full 
of  guttural  speech,  cries,  bleating  of  sheep,  snarling  of  camels 

—  all  lighted  with  the  hot  rays  of  a  brilliant  sun,  with  the 
most  intensely  blue  sky  above.  Even  the  arcades  were  full 
of  buyers  and  sellers.  Camels  were  coming  in  laden  with 
overflowing  panniers,  from  Biskra,  the  guide  said.  Others 
were  lying  down,  waiting  and  being  laden  to  depart,  and  it 
seemed  as  if  the  people  in  front  of  them  must  be  crushed 
by  the  great  clumsy  animals,  as  they  padded  in  or  out.  The 
crowd  paid  not  the  slightest  attention  to  the  newcomers,  but 
went  on  with  their  buying,  trading,  and  selling.  It  w^as  a 
marvel  that  the  venders  —  squatting  on  the  ground  with  mats 
before  them  piled  high  with  carrots,  lentils,  dried  peppers, 
wheat,  barley,  and  a  hundred  other  commodities  —  were  not 
overturned  in  the  seething  crowd,  and  their  commodities  scat- 
tered far  and  wide.  The  travellers  struggled  through  the 
swarms  of  men  and  animals  to  where  a  curious  great  stone 
platform,  about  six  feet  high,  and  ten  or  twelve  feet  square, 

—  occupied  a  space  at  one  side  of  the  market-place;  and 
this,  Mohamed  said,  was  the  prayer  stone,  the  like  of  which 
the  Mozabites  had  everywhere  in  the  towns.  Indeed,  three 
men  were  there  now,  and  others  were  going  up  a  short  lad- 

[  156  ] 


COUNTRY  OF   THE   MOZABITES 

der  leading  to  it.  The  three  men  were  going  through  all 
the  genuflections  of  a  Moslem  prayer,  undisturbed  by, 
and  apparently  oblivious  of,  the  crowd  around  them. 

From  here  the  Commander  saw  a  heap  of  old  blankets 
through  an  opening  in  the  arcade,  so  he  hastened  to  examine 
them,  while  the  Other-one  went  with  the  guide  to  where  a 
short  stout  man  —  the  sheik  —  sat  under  a  cool  arcade  envel- 
oped in  a  creamy  burnous  and  wearing  a  white  hdik  on  his 
head.  He  was  hesitating  about  giving  the  permission,  evi- 
dently not  being  in  fa\x)r  of  allowing  Christians  to  enter  the 
mosque;  but  finally  the  guide  secured  the  permit,  and  they 
struggled  over  to  where  the  Commander  was  pricing  the  blank- 
ets by  his  usual  methods  of  holding  up  silver  pieces.  They 
all  pushed  through  the  crowds  again,  and  climbed  the  shady, 
narrow  lanes  under  the  arcades,  past  windowless  walls  and 
mere  dens  of  shops,  coming  out,  after  a  steep  climb,  to  the 
space  whereon  the  mosque  was  built,  a  rude  structure  with 
its  ugly  minaret.  A  pasty  young  man,  after  scanning  the 
permit,  let  them  into  a  small  court  where  were  crude  ill- 
shapen  columns  of  rubble  stone,  plastered  over  and  white- 
washed, upholding  the  rude  arcades  around.  Here  hung 
water-bottles  of  different  shapes,  which  the  guide  said 
belonged  to  the  devotees  who  used  them  for  pouring  water 
over  their  hands  and  feet  before  their  prayers. 

**  Here,  of  course,  there  is  no  fountain,  as  in  mosques  gen- 
erally," observed  the  Commander.  **  Water  is  a  precious 
thing  here." 

The  presiding  genius  in  the  court  was  an  ancient  and  much 
wrinkled  Mozabite  in  a  big  discolored  turban,  squatting  down 
in  a  corner,  who  concerned  himself  not  at  all  with  the  new- 
comers, but  went  placidly  on  shaving  the  head  of  a  small 
boy  down  between  his  knees  —  the  face  of  the  boy  showing 
that  he,  at  least,  was  having  a  bad  quarter  of  an  hour.  The 
pasty  man  took  them  into  dark  corridors, —  for  this  mosque 
was  entirely  unlike  any  they  had  before  seen  —  and  they 
wound  in  and  out  in  a  bewildering  way,  then  went  down  into 
a  cellar-like  place,  where  was  a  great  cauldron  in  one  dark 

[157] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

comer.  Here,  the  Mozabite  said,  the  water  was  warmed  in 
winter.  Also  here  were  some  oblong  basins  of  stone  over 
which  water  was  poured  on  the  hands  and  feet  before 
prayers,  and  a  little  alcove  or  two,  with  dingy  curtains,  where 
a  modest  Mozabite  could  retire  to  sprinkle  his  entire  body, 
if  he  so  wished.  This  was  a  very  purgatory  of  a  dark  place, 
grimy  with  centuries  of  dirt,  and  the  Other-one  was  glad 
to  get  up  and  out  of  it.  Then  they  climbed  up  the  square, 
ugly  minaret,  and  came  out  on  a  platform  where  the  view 
restored  her  equilibrium.  They  looked  down  over  the  ter- 
races and  arcades  to  the  white  houses  of  the  Arab  and  Euro- 
pean town ;  over  the  wonderful  oasis  of  sixty  thousand  palm- 
trees  and  the  gardens,  in  their  green  luxuriance,  beyond  the 
walls;  but  beyond  lay  the  terrible  rocks,  ravines,  and  barren 
desert  places  from  which  the  industrious,  indefatigable  Moza- 
bites  had  wrested  their  country  and  dug  wells  and  planted 
palms,  and  made  gardens  to  blossom  like  the  rose. 

The  pasty  Mozabite  had  left  to  their  lean  guide  the  task 
of  taking  the  travellers  up  the  rude  stone  steps  to  the  top  of 
the  minaret,  a  hard  climb.  In, response  to  some  questions 
of  the  Other-one,  regarding  the  rites  of  the  Mozabites  and 
the  difference  between  them  and  the  orthodox  Moslems,  the 
guide  told  them  it  was  nothing  but  a  matter  of  different  posi- 
tions in  prayer,  and  he  endeavored  to  illustrate  by  going 
through  what  he  said  were  **  different  positions." 

*' Don't  rely  too  much  on  what  he  tells  you,''  said  the 
Commander,  dryly.  **  You  have  had  experiences  with  guides 
before,  and  enough  to  know  what  their  information,  which 
they  give  out  on  every  subject,  is  worth." 

When  the  travellers  had  again  reached  terra  firma,  the 
Arab  asked  them  if  they  would  not  like  to  see  the  gardens 
of  the  Peres  Blancs  who  have  established  themselves  here  at 
Ghardaia,  and  teach  the  native  boys  and  men,  and  care  for 
the  sick.  Down  in  the  lower  quarters  is  the  long  white  estab- 
lishment of  the  Fathers.  A  pale,  earnest-looking  young  monk, 
Father  David,  met  them  under  the  white  arcade  of  the  build- 
ing and  showed  them  over  the  garden,  one  of  the  most  flour- 

[158] 


MOZABITE  WELL  AT  cilARDAIA 


*  STUCK  "  IN  THE  SAND.  ().\   '11  IK  J^oAD   I'l.'oM  (IIIAKDAIA 


THE   MOZABITE  PEAYER  STONE  IN  THE  PUBLIC  SQUAEE 
AT  GHARDAIA 


''Al6SA-BE^"SLi^fAN,^  THE    KAID    OF    BENI-ISGUEN, 
AND  HIS  '^COUNCIL" 


COUNTRY  OF  THE  MOZABITES 

ishing  and  delightful  in  the  town,  and  nourished  from  a 
big  well.  The  mules  pulling  the  bucket  of  cowskin  looked  fat 
and  lazy. 

Father  David,  they  found,  was  a  scholar  and  much  inter- 
ested in  the  Mozabites.  **  Though  I  don't  believe,"  said  the 
Commander  aside  to  the  Other-one,  *  *  that  he,  or  the  other 
Fathers,  have  ever  converted  one,  with  all  their  efforts.  But 
the  example  the  White  Fathers  set  in  cleanliness,  in  unselfish 
labor  for  their  fellow-man,  ought  to  have  some  good  effect, 
certainly.  *  * 

Father  David  showed  them  into  his  little  library  off  the 
court,  where  were  a  few  shelves  crowded  with  severe-looking 
volumes,  in  Arabic  as  well  as  in  French.  He  told  them  that 
the  Mozabites  were  essentially  a  desert  tribe  and  were  con- 
verted to  this  faith  by  an  Abadite  sheik.  The  security  which 
they  would  enjoy  from  the  persecutions  of  the  other  Moslems 
drove  them  to  this  region  of  the  Oued-Mzab  —  from  which 
they  are  called  Mzabs,  or  Mozabites. 

One  of  their  villages  was  thus  founded,  Father  David  said : 
A  sheik  went  out,  accompanied  by  his  disciples,  and  selecting 
a  hill,  built  at  the  summit  a  mosque,  which  was  at  the  same 
time  a  store-house,  a  place  to  keep  their  arms,  and  a  fortress. 
Then  houses  were  built  around  the  mosque,  the  whole  pro- 
tected by  high  walls.  As  the  populace  increased,  a  second 
ring  of  houses  was  built  around  the  fort.  Ghardaia  is  a 
perfect  example  of  this. 

Thanking  Father  David  for  his  information,  the  Two  left 
the  pale  student-monk  and  went  away  to  the  house  of  another 
devoted  band  toiling  for  the  good  of  humanity  in  this  strange 
and  dreary  country,  the  White  Sisters,  who  care  also  for  the 
siek,  and  teach  the  girls  and  women  to  weave  cloth  and  gay 
blankets.  The  Mother  Superieure,  a  sweet-faced  gracious 
Sister,  received  the  travellers,  and  showed  the  establishment 
— the  pharmacy,  where  were  bottles  of  medicine,  and  the 
long  room  where  the  little  black  and  brown  girls  were  card- 
ing wool  or  weaving.  They  looked  so  picturesque,  the  Other- 
one  persuaded  them  to   go   out  in   the   courtyard   and   be 

[159] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

"snapped  up/'  near  a  picturesque  old  Mozabite  well,  with 
the  sweet  Sisters. 

The  gentle  Abbess,  seeing  the  interest  the  lady  had  in  the 
girls,  said  that  if  the  lady  wished,  she  herself  and  another 
Sister  would  go  with  her  to  see  one  or  two  Mozabite  houses. 
The  Mzabs  disliked  strangers  and  would  not  allow  them  in 
their  houses,  generally,  but  from  these  places  of  which  they 
spoke,  the  ScBurs  Blanches  had  taught  the  women  at  their 
school,  and  so  the  Sisters  were  always  welcome.  "  Of  course 
Monsieur  could  not  go  * ' ;  so  the  guide  remained  to  conduct 
the  Other-one  back,  and  the  Commander  was  left  to  find  his 
way  to  the  hotel  alone  —  which,  considering  his  sense  of 
direction,  was  an  easy  task.  The  gentle  Abbess  and  another 
sweet-faced  Sister  went,  like  white  angels,  with  the  Other- 
one  down  the  narrow,  dirty  streets,  through  lanes  reeking 
with  filth,  by  the  shut  away  houses,  the  guide  following  at  a 
respectful  distance. 

As  they  walked,  the  Sisters  told  gruesome  tales  of  the 
neglect  of  Mozabite  women  by  their  husbands  —  how,  when 
unable  to  work,  or  for  other  reasons,  the  men  cast  their 
wives  heartlessly  into  the  streets  and  left  them  to  care  for 
themselves,  as  best  they  could ;  how  terrible  the  sanitary  con- 
ditions were,  so  much  so  that  some  of  her  little  band  had 
suffered  horribly  from  the  effects  when  they  had  gone  into 
the  homes  to  aid  the  sick;  and  so  on,  until  the  Other-one, 
heart-sick,  begged  them  to  desist. 

The  Sisters  stopped  at  a  door  in  a  blank  wall  and  tapped 
softly;  then  entered  into  a  little  den  of  a  place  with  shelves 
crowded  with  a  dusty  motley  array  of  everything,  from 
slippers,  cloth,  and  spangled  veils,  to  dried  red  peppers  and 
pottery  jugs,  white  metal  anklets,  necklaces,  and  bracelets. 

**  This  is  a  shop  for  the  ladies  exclusively, '*  said  the  Sis- 
ter Superieure.  A  heavy,  sad-eyed  woman,  dressed  like  the 
Bedouin  women  and  bearing  a  pale  baby,  came  out  from 
behind  a  little  high  bench,  whereupon  were  some  gay  striped 
clothes  which  another  woman,  old  and  ugly  and  evidently  a 
shopper,  was  pulling  over  and  examining.     The  mistress  of 

[160] 


COUNTRY  OF   THE   MOZABITES 

the  place  saluted  with  evident  joy  the  Sisters;  and  then 
followed  a  rapid  conversation  in  a  tongue  which  sounded 
very  unmusical  to  the  ear  of  the  Other-one. 

**  This  woman  has  a  very  sad  life,"  said  the  Abbess.  **  Her 
husband  is  extremely  brutal  to  her,  though  at  present  she  is 
the  only  wife.  She  has  had  three  or  four  children,  but  they 
have  all  died,  and  this  one  seems  to  be  fading  away,  too,  and 
she  is  miserably  unhappy  about  the  child.  But  what  can  be 
done  in  this  terribly  unsanitary  place,  from  which  one  can 
not  take  her,  nor  her  baby!  She  is  going  to  show  us  the 
other  room  where  they  live.  She  will  offer  you  some  dates; 
do  not  refuse  them  —  it  would  hurt  her  feelings.'* 

The  woman  took  them  into  another  dark  little  den,  lighted 
only  by  a  high  window.  This  was  dirtier,  more  cluttered 
up  than  the  other,  if  possible,  and  filled  with  a  most  bizarre 
collection  of  things.  Where  they  could  have  been  picked  up 
was  a  problem;  though  it  might  be,  the  Other-one  thought, 
that  the  Mozabite  husband  had  wandered  afar,  as  these  Moza- 
bites  are  said  to  wander,  and  he  must  have  brought  all  the 
old  cast-away  things  he  found  in  junk  shops  or  by-places. 
There  were  two  straw  mats,  very  dirty,  which  served  for 
sleeping  upon  on  the  floor,  and  it  was  difficult  to  step  any- 
where in  the  room  without  treading  on  something,  so  many 
things  were  strewn  around.  The  woman,  without  dropping 
the  pale  mite,  which  moaned  now  and  then,  hunted  and  at 
length  found  some  dusty  dates  in  a  broken  basket  and  offered 
them  to  her  guests.  Of  these  the  Sisters  partook,  with  an 
air  of  trying  to  find  them  very  good;  and  the  Other-one 
accepted  some  and  tried  also  but  could  not  swallow  one,  for 
various  reasons. 

The  Sisters  went  away  from  here  and  down  to  another 
door  in  a  long  windowless  wall.  One  of  their  girls  lived  here, 
they  said,  whom  they  had  taught  many  things.  She  had 
recently  married  an  old  man,  who  had  had  several  wives,  a 
poor  man  who  could  keep  only  one  at  a  time!  It  was  a 
tiny  menage,  the  loom  occupying  half  the  small  court.  A 
young,  bright-eyed  creature  came  to  greet  the  Sisters  with 

[161] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

a  beaming  face.  She  brought  out  some  straw  mats  to  spread 
for  them  to  sit  upon,  but  for  the  Other-one,  as  one  not 
accustomed  to  squatting  down  On  the  floor,  she  dragged  out 
a  gayly  covered  chest, —  her  trousseau  chest,  probably;  then 
she  jabbered  to  the  Sisters,  and  showed  with  pride  the  strip 
of  fine  cloth  she  was  weaving  on  the  loom.  The  method  of 
fabricating  this  she  had  learned  of  the  Soeurs  Blanches  — 
and  more  than  that,  evidently,  for  her  little  home  was  very 
clean.  The  tiny  bedroom  into  which  she  showed  them,  filled 
up  mostly  with  a  bed,  was  spotless  also. 

*'  How  much  these  good  Sisters  have  brought  into  the 
lives  of  these  poor  girls !  ' '  thought  the  Other-one.  ' '  Their 
sacrifices  and  work  have  not  been  in  vain.''  But  she  took 
leave  of  the  simple  young  creature  with  a  sigh.  She  then 
thanked  the  Sisters  and  said  good-bye.  They  seemed  reluc- 
tant to  have  her  leave  them.  She  had  brought  a  breath  of 
the  outside  world, —  of  which  they  knew  so  little, —  into  their 
monotonous  lives. 

Late  in  the  afternoon  the  Motorists  started  with  the  guide 
—  overjoyed  to  take  his  first  motor  ride  —  to  the  sacred  city 
of  Beni-Isguen,  about  three  kilometres  from  Ghardaia.  Going 
out  of  the  gate  of  the  latter  city,  they  noticed  close  at  hand, 
another  city  rising  in  a  pyramid  above  the  river  Mzab.  The 
guide  told  them  it  was  Melika,  once  the  sacred  city,  but 
that  they  could  not  visit  it  in  an  automobile,  for  there  were 
no  roads  which  could  be  used  for  that.  As  they  approached 
Beni-Isguen,  they  saw  a  high  wall  running  up  the  hill  upon 
which  the  city  was  built,  like  the  others  they  had  seen,  in  a 
pyramid,  and  the  wall  seemed  as  if  it  were  holding  the  build- 
ings from  falling  down  the  hill.  This  town  was  equally 
white  and  also  surmounted  with  an  ancient  square  tower. 
Arrived  at  the  gate,  some  boys  and  a  man  or  two  came  out  to 
the  car,  but  evinced  no  special  curiosity.  A  tall,  fine-look- 
ing man  with  a  jet-black  beard,  brushing  aside  the  guide 
Mohamed  as  a  person  of  no  importance  whatever,  addressed 
them  in  excellent  French,  telling  them  it  was  not  allowed  to 
enter  the  gates  in  a  motor  car;  that  he  himself  would  take 

[162] 


COUNTRY   OF   THE   MOZABITES 

them  into  the  village  for  a  short  time,  but  the  rules  of  the 
town  were  strict  —  no  stranger  could  live  there,  nor  could 
one  even  pass  the  night  there. 

**  As  if  we  wished  to  do  such  a  thing!  '*  exclaimed  the 
Other-one  laughing.  **  What  in  the  world  would  ever  induce 
us  to  live  here  ?  * ' 

They  walked  through  narrow  streets  —  but  far  cleaner  than 
those  of  Ghardaia  —  to  the  big  market  square,  where  the 
black-whiskered  man  said  they  must  go  to  find  the  kaid, 
whose  permission  they  must  have  in  order  to  visit  the  mosque. 
Here  was  a  surprising  crowd,  for  it  seemed  to  have  been 
market  day  here  also,  but  this  crowd,  instead  of  crowding, 
pushing,  clamoring,  were  all  tranquilly  seated  around  the 
square  and  near  the  big  pump  in  the  centre,  evidently  repos- 
ing after  the  wear  and  tear  of  the  day;  and  they  produced 
the  most  curious  effect,  all  these  hundreds  of  men  —  in  white 
burnouses,  hdiks,  and  turbans, —  squatting  down,  with  their 
grave  upturned  dark  faces  under  their  white  head-coverings. 
All  looked  toward  the  strangers,  and  the  Other-one  felt  as 
if  she  and  the  Commander  were  players  on  a  stage  and  about 
to  begin  their  act,  and  the  populace  were  ready  to  clap  or 
hiss,  as  they  play  should  or  should  not  please  them. 

**  I  declare  —  I  forgot!**  said  the  Commander.  **  It  is 
here  at  Beni-Isguen  we  are  to  be  sure  to  see  the  sheik,  who 
is  a  character.    His  name  is  Aissa-ben-Sliman.** 

Their  conductor  caught  the  name.  **0h  yes!  That  is 
the  kaid.    He  is  over  there.    He  will  give  you  the  permission.** 

They  walked  carefully  among  the  crouching  Mozabites 
over  to  the  arcade,  where,  seated  under  a  canopy,  was  a 
reverend  old  man  who  might  have  been  Abraham  or  some 
other  Biblical  patriarch.  His  snow-white  beard  descended 
from  his  equally  white  hdik,  upon  his  breast,  and  he  was 
wrapped  in  a  creamy  burnous  of  finest  wool.  He  had  a 
benevolent  face,  and  there  was  a  merry  twinkle  in  his  eye, 
so  that  the  Other-one  felt  he  could  appreciate  a  joke  and 
also  make  one  himself.  Three  or  four  men  were  seated  near 
him;  one,  a  grave  old  man,  white-bearded  also,  was  poring 

[163] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

over  a  roll  inscribed  with  Arabic  characters.  He  paid  no 
attention  whatever  to  the  strangers.  The  others  were  sharp, 
crafty-looking  men,  who  scowled  at  them,  but  Aissa-ben-Sli- 
man  himself  looked  kindly  at  the  travellers,  though  he  hes- 
itated when  the  conductor  consulted  him  as  to  permission  to 
enter  the  mosque.  He  finally  gave  it,  with  a  gracious  air, 
and  sent  his  major-domo  —  a  slim  youth  who  was  hovering 
near,  wrapped  in  a  dark  striped  burnous  —  for  the  key,  which 
the  sheik  handed  them  with  a  benevolent  smile. 

*  *  He  is  an  old  beauty ! ' '  exclaimed  the  Other-one.  *  *  "Why 
did  you  not  think  of  him  before !  He  might  have  invited  us 
to  lunch!    But  at  any  rate  I  must  have  his  photograph!  *' 

This  request  also  made  him  deliberate,  but  finally,  he  gave 
his  permission  graciously,  and  the  gratified  Other-one  pointed 
her  camera  at  him  with  the  eyes  of  all  the  Mozabites  in  the 
market  place  fixed  on  her.  Suddenly  Aissa-ben-Sliman  called 
a  halt. 

*  *  What  is  the  matter !  * '  cried  the  disappointed  Lady. 

**  He  wishes  his  picture  with  his  French  decorations,'* 
said  their  conductor.  Again  the  major-domo  fled  away,  and 
returned  with  them  —  and  decorated,  with  his  hands  dis- 
posed stiffly  before  him,  the  kaid  was  **  snapped  up  **  by  the 
happy  Lady,  who  felt  certain  he  would  be  "  no  end  of  fun, ' ' 
could  they  have  had  time  to  cultivate  his  acquaintance,  and 
who  left  him  with  regret  that  this  was  denied  her. 

With  the  Commander  and  their  conductor,  she  climbed  the 
narrow  steep  streets  to  the  high  terrace,  where  was  an  ancient 
tower.  It  was  not  the  mosque  after  all,  though  why  the  man 
did  not  take  them  there,  the  Other-one  could  not  understand. 
However,  they  walked,  with  some  difficulty,  up  the  dark, 
uneven  stone  steps  of  this,  and  came  out  upon  a  square  plat- 
form. Below  them  the  village  of  Beni-Isguen  could  be  seen, 
with  its  white  walls  holding  it  in;  beyond,  plantations  of 
many  feathery  palms  and  green  gardens.  On  the  other  side 
was  the  pyramid  village  of  Melika,  and  beyond  that,  on  a 
rock  overhanging  the  river,  Bou-Noura,  a  poor  village  but 
with  flourishing   gardens  and  palms.     Directly  under  the 

[164] 


COUNTRY  OF  THE   MOZABITES 

tower  lay  a  curious  cemetery  with  a  big  white  prayer-stone, 
not  far  off  from  it.  The  mounds  of  the  cemetery  were  covered 
with  rude  pottery  jars  and  jugs  of  various  sizes,  disposed 
in  a  line  on  top  of  each  grave.  The  guide  told  them,  in 
answer  to  their  question,  that  these  were  the  graves  of  very 
poor  people,  and  the  jugs  were  placed  there  to  indicate  the 
name  of  the  dead  buried  below,  as  they  could  not  afford 
inscriptions. 

**  How  curious!  "  exclaimed  the  Other-one.  **  How  can 
they  possibly  know  from  those  1 '  * 

**  They  are  placed  in  a  certain  order  and  according  to  the 
size,  so  the  relatives  easily  tell  the  name  from  that.** 

The  travellers  soon  went  down,  and  away  from  this  curious 
town,  and  the  next  morning  they  were  rolling  away  from 
the  country  of  the  Mzabs,  leaving  white  Ghardaia  lying  in 
its  green  oasis  and  gardens,  with  a  very  hot  sun  pouring  its 
rays  down  upon  the  Mozabites,  Arabs,  Jews,  and  Europeans 
inhabiting  it. 

The  Motorists  went  into  the  Gehenna  of  barren  wastes  and 
scarred  and  calcined  rocks.  The  sand  had  blown  in  on  the 
road,  and  Adrian,  in  trying  to  run  through  a  side  track  that 
seemed  practicable,  went  down  into  the  sand,  and  there  the 
car  stopped  still!  It  certainly  looked  dubious,  for  a  time, 
the  heavy  tires  sinking  lower  and  lower,  with  all  the  power 
of  the  engine  put  on  to  pull  it  out. 

At  this  moment,  there  came  in  sight  over  a  mound  of 
sand,  two  men  riding  great  camels,  who  urged  on  the  huge 
swaying  creatures  to  where  they  saw  the  car,  when  they 
were  loudly  hailed  by  the  Commander.  The  nomads  quickly 
comprehended  from  the  situation  what  the  need  was,  and 
came  to  the  rescue.  What  with  their  efforts  and  the  Com- 
mander's, in  pushing  at  the  wheels,  and  those  of  the  skil- 
ful chauffeur  at  the  engine,  the  car  was  soon  extricated  from 
its  difficulty,  and  the  Motorists  proceeded  on  their  way,  leav- 
ing the  two  nomads  happy  possessors  of  several  franc  pieces. 

It  was  afternoon  when  the  travellers  came  to  the  most 
welcome  sight  of  the  caravansary  of  Telrempt.     There  were 

ri651 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

some  of  the  inmates  watching  for  them  at  the  great  gate, 
and  they  were  received  with  demonstrations  of  joy,  the  beam- 
ing cook  almost  embracing  the  Commander.  In  a  short  time 
the  luncheon  was  ready,  and  such  a  luncheon,  of  which  the 
crowning  effort  was  the  big  dish  of  cous-cous,  served  in  a 
large  deep  plate  with  a  pitcher  of  rich  tomato  sauce  to 
pour  over  it!  The  hungry  Motorists  praised  and  ate  until 
they  could  eat  no  more,  while  the  fat  cook  and  his  tall  brother 
stood  by  with  pleased  smiles,  but  were  ' '  desolated  ' '  to  think 
so  much  was  left  uneaten  after  all. 

Cous-cous,  the  Other-one  had  learned,  is  the  national  dish 
for  Arabs  and  natives, —  the  Kabyle  in  his  mountain  fast- 
nesses, or  the  nomad  on  the  plains.  Its  preparation  is  rather 
elaborate  and  is  one  of  the  special  accomplishments  of  native 
women.  Wheat  grains  are  pounded  on  a  stone,  or  in  a  mor- 
tar, then  rolled  by  hand,  keeping  the  granulated  morsels 
separate,  and  these  are  picked  out  as  they  grow  large  enough. 
Then,  dried  in  the  sun,  they  will  keep  a  long  time.  This 
cous-cous,  a  sort  of  semolina  like  small  pills,  is  placed  in  a 
perforated  pottery  dish  and  cooked  from  the  steam  arising 
from  another  vessel  below  it,  which  contains  water,  meat, 
vegetables  and  aromatic  plants,  which  are  served  with  it. 
Often  it  is  cooked  without  meat,  but  with  an  extra  allowance 
of  red  pepper  and  tomatoes.  The  natives  drink  milk  with 
this,  rarely  fresh,  but  generally  curdled.  That  night  saw 
the  travellers  sojourning  at  Laghouat,  the  next  day  enduring 
a  luncheon  at  Djelfa  —  and  arriving  at  night  at  Guelt-es- 
Stel  and  where  they  were  gladly  welcomed  by  the  robust 
young  Frenchman  and  his  rosy  wife  as  if  they  were  valued 
friends  returned  from  a  long  and  dangerous  journey.  On 
from  here  the  car  ran  smoothly  to  Boghari,  where  the  Com- 
mander decided  to  turn  off  to  make  a  visit  to  the  cedar  forests 
at  Teniet-el-Had.  They  went  up  to  Bogari,  which  was  once 
a  Roman  military  post.  The  road  now  ran  along  the  flanks 
of  hills.  Mountains,  rising  with  their  slopes  black  with 
forests,  dominate  the  Valley  of  the  Chelif.  To  the  northwest 
the  Ouarsenis  Mountains  rise  in  all  their  grandeur.     It  was 

[  166  ] 


COUNTRY  OF  THE  MOZABITES 

late  when  the  motorists  entered  the  poorly  lighted  town  of 
Teniet-el-Had  situated  in  the  most  important  and  most  fre- 
quented pass,  or  coly  of  the  Ouarsenis.  There  was  little  of 
the  town  visible  in  the  obscurity,  and  the  hotel  where  the  car 
stopped  looked  most  unpromising.  When  the  weary  travel- 
lers went  into  the  small  vestibule,  there  was  no  one  at  all 
to  greet  them,  but  they  heard  shouts  and  singing  issuing  from 
a  side  room,  from  which  a  wild-eyed  and  desperately  hurried 
waiter  plunged,  when  the  Commander  called  aloud  in  his 
impatience.  A  stout  landlady,  breathing  heavily,  made  her 
appearance  in  a  few  moments,  but  declared  that  she  had  not 
a  room  in  the  house,  not  even  for  the  President  of  France 
if  he  should  come  that  night. 

**  But  we  can't  sleep  in  the  street,  surely!  '*  exclaimed  the 
Other-one. 

The  stout  patrone  reflected,  then  she  relented,  and  would 
find  them  rooms  outside.  They  had  an  indifferent  dinner, 
served  by  the  wild-eyed  waiter,  who  left  the  hungry  travel- 
lers though  he  was  about  to  place  a  dish  on  the  table  — 
whenever  there  were  shouts  for  him  in  the  room  where  the 
officers  were  making  merry. 

In  the  morning  the  town  presented  a  more  cheerful  aspect, 
and  there  was  an  odor  of  pines  in  the  rather  crisp  air,  for 
the  town  lies  up  over  three  thousand  feet,  and  the  springs 
are  cold.  The  long  street,  shaded  with  pines  and  plane- 
trees,  was  full  of  Arabs,  and  a  market,  as  usual,  was  in  prog- 
ress. The  Commander  was  much  disgruntled  when  the  waiter 
at  the  hotel  assured  him  it  was  impossible  to  go  up  to  the 
cedars  in  an  automobile.  The  road  was  very  bad,  he  said. 
So  there  was  nothing  to  do  but  accept  the  rickety  wagonette 
which  that  astute  individual  secured  for  him,  with  a  pair 
of  lean  horses  hitched  to  it,  but  the  Other-one  was  contented 
with  the  serious  and  cleanly  Arab,  who  wore  a  burnous  of 
snowy  whiteness,  and  who  was  to  drive  and  act  as  their  guide. 
The  horses  crawled  slowly  up  the  hill,  over  the  rough,  rocky 
road,  mountains  rising  all  around. 

*  *  There  are  no  cedar-trees,  as  yet,  that  I  see  —  only  cork- 

[167] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

trees  and  live-oaks/'  said  the  Other-one.  "  I  hope  we  are 
not  going  to  be  disappointed.  They  ought  to  show  up  soon, 
as  it  is  only  fourteen  kilometres  to  the  Ronde  Pointe  where 
they  say  the  Lebanon  cedars  are  the  biggest." 

*  *  After  we  get  around  these  hills, ' '  returned  the  Com- 
mander, *  *  we  shall  run  into  the  forest ;  but  what  a  snail 's 
pace!  We  shall  never  get  anywhere  with  these  tired-out 
horses.  However,  we  won't  have  any  cause  to  complain  of 
the  cedar-trees ;  they  will  not  be  of  the  largest  size,  probably, 
but  it  is  rather  astonishing  that  cedars  of  Lebanon  flourish 
here.  They  are  a  slow-growing  tree,  and  some  specimens  have 
reached  two  hundred  and  ten  years.  The  wood  seems  never 
to  decay,  and  so  valuable  for  carpentry  and  cabinet  work. 
The  trees  grow  straight  up,  and  when  at  a  certain  height 
spread  out  horizontally  like  a  great  umbrella."  As  the  car 
came  around  the  flank  of  the  mountain  the  cedars  began  to 
appear,  but  they  were  young  trees.  Beyond,  on  a  rocky 
crag  overhanging  the  valley,  there  came  into  view,  some  three 
kilometres  from  the  town,  a  great  tree  with  a  wide-spreading 
top,  which  the  guide  said  was  called  the  Parapluie,  and  ver- 
itably it  was  a  great  green  umbrella,  looking  as  if  some 
Japanese  had  spread  it  and  left  it  there.  From  here  the 
travellers  had  a  magnificent  view  down  over  the  valley,  to 
the  Zaccar  with  white  Miliana  showing  on  its  flanks. 

The  road  was  now  more  level,  and  the  lean  horses  began 
to  trot  on  a  little,  the  trees  increased  in  number  and  size, 
and  after  a  while  the  travellers  entered  into  a  great  shady 
forest,  that  made  them  think  of  the  solemn  interiors  of 
grand  cathedrals. 

•  *'  Can  it  be  we  are  in  Africa?  "  exclaimed  the  Other-one, 

*  *  with  this  green  shade  and  these  great  trees !  We  seem 
to  be  in  another  clime.  With  me,  Africa  has  always  stood 
for  limitless  deserts,  camels,  and  oases  of  palm-trees.  Cedars 
of  Lebanon  do  not  belong  to  it !  " 

The  Arab,  who  had  been  gravely  silent  most  of  the  way, 
only  answering  their  questions  in  the  briefest  way,  now 
became  a  little  more  communicative  as  he  saw  the  delight  of 

[168] 


CEDARS  OF  LEBANON  AT  TENIET-EL-HAD, 
AND  THE  ARAB  DRIVER 


COUNTRY  OF  THE   MOZABITES 

the  travellers  in  the  forest.  In  very  good  French,  he  told 
them  that  they  would  come  to  many  finer  specimens  of 
cedars,  also  that  the  Government  was  beginning  to  take  care 
of  this  forest;  that  it  was  being  cleared  of  dying  and  dead 
trees,  and  many  young  ones  were  being  set  out  and  were 
flourishing.  Also,  he  said,  the  people  were  forbidden  to  pas- 
ture their  flocks  in  the  forest,  which  he,  ho^wever,  thought 
*  *  very  tyrannical  and  very  foolish,  for  what  harm  could  a 
few  sheep  or  goats,  even  cows,  do  to  a  great  forest  ?  * ' 

**  I  Ve  heard  the  Arabs  don't  care  for  trees,**  said  the 
Other-one,  to  the  Commander,  **  and  that  some  here  purposely 
let  their  animals  into  plantations  of  young  fruit-trees  to 
destroy  them.** 

When  the  travellers  had  gone  some  fourteen  kilometres  on 
a  road  over  which  the  Commander  said  they  might  certainly 
have  driven  in  their  car,  even  if  it  was  a  little  uneven  and 
stony,  they  came  to  the  Ronde  Pointe  des  Cedres. 

Here  is  a  little  chalet  where  one  may  picnic  if  he  likes. 
Here  the  grave  Arab  showed  them  some  of  the  most  wonder- 
ful trees  they  had  yet  seen,  forest  giants  with  great  green 
crowns.  On  a  path  not  far  off  they  climbed  a  little  to  see 
the  **  Sultane,'*  a  hundred  and  ten  feet  high  and  eight  feet 
through ;  and  the  **  Messad,**  even  more  imposing.  Then  they 
retraced  their  way  through  the  green  forest,  feeling  that  their 
trip,  even  if  fatiguing  from  the  slow  motion  and  the  rough 
road,  was  well  worth  all  the  effort,  and  they  arrived  late  at 
Teniet-el-Had,  weary  but  contented. 

The  next  morning  they  were  off  again  over  hills,  down 
across  the  valley  of  the  Chelif,  through  Affreville,  with  its 
fertile  lands  around  it,  and  Affroun,  and  across  the  wide 
luxuriant  Mitidja,  with  its  great  vineyards.  The  lights  were 
twinkling  in  Blida  when  they  ran  through  its  fragrant  orange 
groves  and  gardens,  then  to  busy  Hussein  Dey  and  so  down 
to  the  sea.  At  last  they  rolled  up  to  their  luxurious  hotel 
at  Mustapha,  where  they  descended,  satisfied  that  their  trip 
to  the  Mozabite  country  was  one  of  the  most  interesting  they 
had  ever  taken. 

[169] 


CHAPTER  X 

A  DAY  OF  LEISURE;  THEN  OFF  BY  TIZI-OUZU  TO  FORT  NATIONAL 
AND  FORT  MICHELET  ;  TO  BOUGIE  BY  AZAGA 

THE  next  day  after  the  trip  to  the  Mozabite  country, 
the  Commander  sat  scanning  his  maps,  preparing  to 
conquer  other  unknown  countries. 

* '  At  last, ' '  he  said  to  the  Other-one  ' '  we  are  to  go  to 
Fort  National, —  which  is  in  the  heart  of  the  Kabyle  country, 
a  hundred  and  thirty-four  kilometres  from  here, —  by  Mener- 
ville  and  Tizi-Ouzu  —  ' ' 

' '  What  a  name !  ' '  interrupted  the  Lady,  * '  it  sounds  like 
a  sneeze!  '* 

*  *  Then  I  would  like  very  much  to  take  from  Fort  National, ' ' 
continued  the  Commander,  "  the  long  route  over  the  Col 
de  Tirouda  to  Bougie.  The  scenery  is  magnificent  and  I 
am  told  the  road  is  excellent,  but  that  we  cannot  do  this 
season  of  the  year.  The  pass  is  full  of  snow  now,  and  will 
not  be  open  probably  for  a  month,  so  we  will  go  directly  to 
Fort  National,  run  over  to  Fort  Michelet  and  return  that 
night  —  only  forty-seven  kilometres,  to  see  the  scenery,  then 
go  on  East  the  next  day  to  Constantine,  where  we  will  plan 
our  trip  to  the  Sahara  —  and  we  must  be  off  early  tomorrow 
morning!  '* 

**  Very  well!  "  returned  the  Other-one,  ''  I  shall  be  ready; 
in  the  meantime  we  will  take  the  day  here  leisurely,  and  do 
up  some  of  the  things  we  have  neglected,  such  as  visiting 
certain  bric-a-brac  shops  where  there  are  treasures  of  jew- 
ellery, rugs,  blankets,  and  those  things  which  are  dear  to 
your  soul!  '* 

So  the  Two  went  down  in  the  afternoon  to  the  town  and 
spent  the  time  in  blissfully  hanging  over  certain  of  the  above 
mentioned  treasures.     It  was  quite  late  when  they  at  last 

[  170  ] 


A  DAY   OF  LEISURE 

tore  themselves  away,  and  the  Other-one  proposed  they  should 
go  into  a  hotel  on  the  Place  du  Gouvernement  for  their  din- 
ner; so  they  went  into  a  pretentious  one,  and  seated 
themselves  at  a  small  table  in  the  rather  gaudy  dining-room. 
The  consequential  head  waiter  came  slowly  up  with  an  indif- 
ferent air  to  take  their  order  —  for  our  couple  were  rather 
plain-looking  people  and  would  * '  probably  not  be  lavish  with 
pour-boiresy**  he  decided.  But  suddenly  he  became  alert,  as 
a  party  of  four  —  one,  an  officer  in  a  blue  coat  with  much  gold 
braid  and  a  mustache  turned  fiercely  up  —  came  in  and 
seated  themselves  at  the  next  table.  The  head  waiter  hastily 
called  an  under-waiter,  giving  him  the  Commander's  order; 
then  he  turned  deferentially  to  the  newcomers,  with  an  air 
of  welcome.  The  Commander  unfolded  his  napkin  and  was 
about  to  make  a  remark  to  his  companion,  when  these  words 
caught  his  ear,  spoken  by  the  oldest  of  the  party,  a  man  of 
distinguished  appearance  to  wliich  a  heavy  gray  mustache 
contributed  not  a  little. 

**  The  Kabyles  are  a  most  wonderful  and  interesting 
people.'* 

**  You  have  seen  them?'*  asked  a  third  member  of  the 
company,  a  slight,  bronzed  man  with  spectacles. 

* '  Yes ;  during  my  residence  in  Algeria,  I  have  been  brought 
more  or  less  in  contact  with  them  and  have  taken  every  oppor- 
tunity to  learn  all  possible  about  them.  I  have  always  had 
a  taste  for  studying  the  manners  and  customs  of  the  prim- 
itive peoples  of  whatever  country  I  lived  in  for  the  time 
being." 

**  I  expect  to  travel  for  some  time  in  the  mountains  of 
Kabylia,"  said  the  man  in  spectacles,  **  and  I  wish  you  would 
tell  me  a  little  about  the  Kabyle  tribes. '* 

The  Commander  murmured,  sotto  voce,  to  the  Other-one, 
**  We  also  want  to  know  a  little  about  them.*' 

The  man  with  the  gray  mustache  poured  out,  deliberately, 
a  glass  of  wine  from  the  carafe,  which  looked  as  if  it  con- 
tained molten  rubies,  swallowed  the  wine  slowly,  then  began ; 
while  the  Commander  and  the  Lady  listened  intently,  eager 

[171] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

to  pick  up  every  crumb  of  information  about  the  people  of 
the  country  in  which  they  had  elected  to  motor. 

**  The  Kabyles,  or  Berbers  (Barbarians,  as  the  Romans 
called  them ) ,  are  the  result  of  a  fusion  between  the  aborigines 
and  the  people  who  succeeded  them  in  the  domination  of 
Algeria;  also  with  the  Vandals.  When  the  great  Arab  in- 
vasion came,  the  Kabyles  retired  to  their  mountain  fastnesses, 
and  though  nominally  embracing  Islamism,  continued  to  main- 
tain their  independence.  It  seems,  however,  in  Roman  times 
they  must  have  more  or  less  submitted  to  that  people  as  in 
their  most  remote  valleys  and  fastnesses  there  are  traces  of 
the  presence  of  that  great  nation. 

**  The  Kabyles  are  spread  out  over  three  provinces  of 
Algeria.  Those  of  the  Atlas  Mountains,  and  in  the  neighbor- 
Jiood  of  Blida  (as  the  Beni  Moussa,  the  Mouzaia)  who  are 
subjected  to  the  French  and  used  in  the  olden  time,  in  con- 
sequence of  their  vicinity  to  Algiers,  to  consent  occasionally 
to  pay  tribute  to  the  Turks.  Two  of  the  most  important 
branches  of  the  Kabyle  race  inhabit  the  province  of  Algiers ; 
to  the  West  they  occupy  all  the  space  between  the  Chelif 
and  the  sea;  to  the  East,  what  is  called  '  La  Grande  Kaby- 
lie  '  which  forms  a  triangle,  the  summit  of  which  is  at  Setif, 
and  the  base  on  the  seashore  from  Dellys  to  Collo.  The  first 
of  these  has  been  the  scene  of  fierce  struggles  between  them 
and  the  French. 

**  The  Kabyles  are  in  no  way  aggressive  and  never  fight, 
save  when  their  territory  is  invaded;  they  in  no  way  inter- 
fere with  the  aggrandizement  of  French  influence  around 
them. 

**  All  I  have  said  applies  to  the  Kabyles  properly  so-called. 
In  the  south  of  the  province  of  Constantine,  and  on  the  con- 
fines of  the  desert,  is  a  tribe  of  these  very  people,  who  are 
nomads  and  shepherds.  There  is  again  another  Kabyle 
tribe,  the  Biskris,  living,  as  the  name  implies,  at  Biskra  and 
other  parts  of  the  desert.  These  Biskris  may  occasionally 
be  met  in  the  larger  towns,  where  they  act  as  porters,  water- 
carriers  and  fortune  tellers,  which  is  one  of  the  characteris- 

[  172  ] 


A  DAY   OF  LEISURE 

tic  trades  of  the  race.  Many  of  the  Kabyle  women  fortune- 
tellers are  met  in  the  streets  of  Algiers,  where  they  excite  the 
curiosity  of  all  foreigners ;  but  their  home  is  the  sandy  desert 
and  their  heart  is  thoroughly  Kabyle. 

**  These  people  are  laborious,  good  agriculturists,  and  very 
clever  in  manufactures,  especially  of  linen  and  woollen  mate- 
rials. They  live  a  sedentary  life,  have  flourishing  villages  and 
roofed  and  whitewashed  houses.  When  they  have  no  work 
at  home,  they  go  down  to  the  towns  to  earn  money;  their 
thirst  for  gold  is  equal  to  that  of  the  Arabs.** 

The  speaker  paused  to  apply  himself  to  a  tempting  dish 
just  brought,  and  the  French  officer  began  to  talk : 

**  It  is  certain  that  we  French  do  not  feel  very  kindly  to- 
ward the  Kabyles.  They  were  the  most  difficult  of  the  people 
whom  we  had  to  conquer,  and  in  the  insurrection  of  1871, 
they  treated  our  people  who  were  living  in  Kabylia  in  the 
most  treacherous  and  inhuman  manner.  But  one  cannot  but 
admire  their  savage  independence,  intrenched  as  they  are  in 
their  mountain  fastnesses.  They  are  superior  to  the  Arabs  of 
to-day.** 

**  It  is  true,**  asserted  the  man  with  the  gray  mustache, 
**  that  they  give  complete  freedom  to  their  wives,  who  are,  in 
this  instance,  happier  than  their  Arab  sisters.  The  Kabyle 
women  do  not  hide  their  faces;  they  are  allowed  to  attend 
to  their  duties  outside  of  their  houses  without  veils,  but 
apart  from  this  particular  liberty,  they  are  considered  by 
their  husbands  as  much  beasts  of  burden  as  the  Arab  women. 
The  Kabyles  are  very  jealous  of  their  wives,  however,  and, 
it  is  said,  with  good  reason.  The  costume  of  the  women  is 
almost  uniform  for  all  the  wearers.  It  consists  of  two  foutas 
of  dark  blue  cotton  material,  striped  with  red  and  yellow,  fas- 
tened on  the  shoulders  with  two  large  brooches  and  strapped 
around  the  loins  with  a  leather  belt.  A  black  silk,  or  cotton, 
foulard  is  used  as  a  head-dress ;  this  foulard  is  sometimes  red 
and  yellow,  but  more  generally  black  and  red.  A  great  quan- 
tity of  jewellery  is  worn,  consisting  of  bangles,  bracelets, 
anklets,  necklaces,  brooches,  and  hoop  ear-rings.     The  women 

ri73  1 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

go  barefooted,  and  are  tattooed,  chiefly  with  a  cross  between 
the  eyes  and  chin. 

**  The  men's  costume  consists  of  a  gown,  or  gandoura,  of 
white  or  striped  material,  a  leather  belt,  and  one  or  two  bur- 
nouses like  the  Arabs.  The  turban  is  also  the  same  as  worn  by 
the  Arabs, —  white  muslin  with  a  few  yards  of  camel's  hair 
twisted  around." 

*'  Very  interesting,"  said  the  traveller.  '*  I  must  make  a 
visit  as  soon  as  possible  to  these  Kabyles. ' ' 

' '  Yes,  indeed !  ' '  exclaimed  the  French  officer.  ' '  There  is 
a  Kabyle  proverb  which  says,  *  Who  has  not  seen  Kabylia  has 
not  seen  Algeria.'  You  may  find  it  difficult.  They  are  a 
very  independent  people  and  detest  strangers.  However,  take 
a  good  Kabyle  guide  with  you  when  you  attempt  to  enter 
their  towns,  and  you  may  find  it  less  difficult. ' ' 

The  conversation  turned  to  other  topics,  and  the  Com- 
mander and  the  Other-one  soon  rose  to  go,  well  pleased  with 
the  information  they  had  thus  acquired  about  the  interesting 
people  whose  country  they  were  about  to  invade. 

On  the  next  morning  when  the  Motorists  departed  for  Fort 
National,  the  sun's  beams  were  softened  by  a  light  fog,  and 
long,  flaky  clouds  drifted  across  the  sky.  The  sea  had  streaks 
of  blue  near  the  horizon.  The  car  was  well  stocked  with 
everything  of  which  the  provident  Commander  could  think. 
There  were  four  extra  tires,  two  reservoirs  of  essence,  and 
enough  wraps  to  content  an  Eskimo.  '*  For  we  may  get  very 
cold  weather  in  the  mountains,"  said  the  Commander. 

He  directed  Adrian  to  follow  the  road  to  busy  Maison 
Carree,  then  they  turned  sharply  to  the  right,  up  a  hill.  In 
the  far  distance  the  Atlas  peaks  were  white  with  snow  and 
their  clefts  deeply  blue.  A  faint  veil  of  mist  softened  their 
outlines. 

Long  fields  of  artichokes  stretched  away  on  each  side  of 
the  road.  They  came  to  a  long  avenue  of  lime  or  sycamore- 
trees,  their  brown  last  year 's  balls  swinging  in  the  light  breeze. 
Just  beyond,  they  passed  one  of  the  queer  stage  coaches, 
packed,  as  usual,  to  overflowing,  with  Arabs  who  regarded 

[174] 


A  DAY   OF  LEISURE 

the  car  with  looks  of  consternation.  The  car  flashed  by  them, 
leaving  them  glaring  through  a  cloud  of  dust,  and  passed  on 
through  a  village  of  pink  and  white  houses;  the  square  at 
the  end  of  the  long  straight  street  was  planted  with  stiff 
palm-trees.  Beyond  there  were  groves  of  eucalyptus  with 
their  straggly  branches 

''They  tell  me,"  said  the  Commander,  **that  wherever 
there  is  a  malarial  place  they  plant  eucalyptus-trees.  They 
certainly  flourish  well,  judging  by  these  luxuriant  specimens.'* 

The  air,  always  fresh  and  sweet,  had  a  faint  spicy  odor 
from  them.  Long  fields  of  vines  were  passed,  then  came  uncul- 
tivated lands  where  the  leaves  of  the  bushes  and  plants 
sparkled  like  jewels  with  the  morning  dew.  For  a  long  dis- 
tance now,  the  road  had  great  piles  of  stones  on  each  side, 
and  natives,  superintended  by  a  dusty  Frenchman  with  a 
long,  tumed-up  mustache,  were  breaking  them  to  mend  the 
roads. 

Now  came  a  wide  field  where  masses  of  pale,  pinky  blooms 
of  the  asphodel  cast  upon  the  morning  breeze  their  pungent 
odor.  Upon  a  hill  to  the  left,  the  genesta  (Genesta  ferox), 
or  furze,  made  the  gray  rocks  gay  with  its  golden  blossoms; 
then  other  fields  where  yellow  dandelions  starred  the  short 
grass.  They  caused  one  of  the  party  to  think  of  the  wayside 
meadows  in  New  England  springs,  and  warmed  her  heart. 
Then  the  car  entered  a  grove  of  great  cork-trees  {Qucrcus 
suber) ;  their  trunks,  stripped  of  their  bark  half-way  up,  had 
a  melancholy  air,  and  seemed,  too,  ashamed  as  if  they  were 
half  dressed. 

The  Commander  here  turned  to  the  Lady.  **  It  is  said  the 
cork-trees  are  the  most  valuable  forest  trees  in  this  country. 
It  seems  they  strip  the  tree  of  its  bark  every  eight  or  ten 
years  after  it  has  had  fifteen  years  of  growth.  The  first  strip 
of  bark  they  take  off  is  thin  and  hard  and  is  used  principally 
to  make  lamp  black.  After  the  second  and  third  cuttings, 
the  cork  is  of  the  best  quality.  With  each  harvest  a  tree 
usually  gives  a  hundred  to  a  hundred  and  fifty  pounds  of 
cork,*' 

[175] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

Out  of  the  cork  forest  they  came  to  a  little  town  with  a 
long  straight  street  of  low  houses,  lined  with  plane-trees  on 
both  sides.  From  there  they  flashed  by  barley  and  wheat 
fields  of  softest  green.  Always  on  the  road  were  the  trudging 
natives,  flocks  of  sheep  and  goats  with  their  accompanying 
shepherds  and  dust,  patient  donkeys  with  great  panniers  full 
to  overflowing,  under  which  the  little  beasts  could  hardly  be 
seen,  and  sometimes  they  were  bestridden  by  sturdy,  lazy- 
looking  Arabs,  their  brown  feet  almost  trailing  in  the  dust. 
Now  came  a  queer  cart,  drawn  by  a  tiny  moth-eaten-looking 
donkey.  Three  white  dogs  lay  at  ease  in  it,  while  a  white- 
turbaned,  old  man  pummelled  the  poor  donkey  with  a  club. 
A  field  stretched  beyond,  white  with  daisies,  as  if  covered  with 
snow.  The  road  now  ascended  steeper  hills.  There  were  sud- 
den brief  glimpses  of  the  sea  between  the  openings  in  them. 
It  had  a  sapphire  blue  tint  and  the  palest  of  pink  clouds 
floated  just  above  the  horizon.  On  a  sharp  point  jutting  out, 
the  white  koubba  of  a  holy  man  gave  a  note  of  rest.  Beyond, 
where  a  hill  sloped  down,  men  were  ploughing  with  the 
crooked  stick  of  ancient  times. 

At  fifty-four  kilometres  the  car  came  into  the  town  of 
Menerville,  on  the  flanks  of  the  Col  des  Beni-Aicha, —  the  neck 
of  a  mountain, —  the  only  route  going  from  the  Mitidja  to 
Kabylia.  It  is  not  an  interesting  town,  but  has  fine  groves  of 
eucalyptus-trees,  and  is  noted  for  the  big  native  market  held 
here.  It  was  market  day  when  our  travellers  arrived,  and 
they  had  the  chance  to  see  all  in  full  swing.  Just  outside  of 
the  town  there  was  a  great  place  enclosed  by  wooden  palings, 
and  within  and  without  was  a  jumbled  mass  of  beings,  natives 
of  all  kinds,  Kabyles,  Arabs,  nomads,  a  surging  multitude  of 
burnouses,  haiks,  and  turbans.  There  were  small  tents  within 
and  without;  all  kinds  of  curious  carts,  wagons,  vans,  and  a 
stage  coach  or  two.  There  were  flocks  of  sheep  and  goats, 
herds  of  cattle,  donkeys  here  and  there,  with  a  cloud  of  dust 
over  all,  and  the  war  of  voices,  the  bleating  of  sheep,  braying 
of  donkeys,  and  all  the  other  indescribable  sounds  of  an  Arab 
fair. 

[176] 


OFF    TO    FORT    NATIONAL 

Beyond  Menerville,  the  road  turned  to  the  left.  *'  That 
road  to  the  right/*  said  the  Commander,  **  leads  to  Constan- 
tine  by  the  Grorge  of  the  Isser,  passing  through  Palestro,  where, 
I  have  read,  was  a  frightful  tragedy;  nearly  all  the  French 
colonists  of  the  place,  with  the  Swiss  and  Italian  workmen, 
were  massacred  by  the  Kabyles  in  the  insurrection  of  1871. 
The  gorge  is  said  to  be  magnificent  for  scenery. '  * 

They  were  now  passing  great  plantations,  African  farms, 
where  the  boundaries  and  the  fields  were  separated  by  thick 
hedges  of  the  Barbary  fig  {Opuntia  ficus  India)  or  the  prickly 
pear,  with  its  great  fleshy  pear-shaped  leaves,  bristling  with 
sharp  little  thorns.  The  natives  use  it  for  marking  the  limits 
of  their  fields  and  to  protect  what  grows  within  from  their 
animals,  which  can  never  penetrate  this  hedge.  Also  the 
pear-shaped  leaves  are  cooked  and  eaten,  as  well  as  the  small, 
reddish  fruit.  It  seems  to  be  easily  propagated.  Our  party 
noticed  some  natives  sticking  small  cuttings  of  the  leaves  in 
shallow  holes  on  the  boundaries  of  fields.  It  seems  wonderful 
that  it  can  grow  from  the  morsels  of  leaves  they  were  planting. 

The  car  rolled  on  by  the  Moulin  du  Roulage,  a  primitive 
cabaret  for  the  refreshment  of  man  and  beast,  from  which 
they  followed  the  road  to  the  left.  They  saw  afar  the  moun- 
tains in  serrated  ranks,  then  they  dropped  back,  leaving  the 
wide  valley,  where  the  Isser  River  flowed  between.  Before 
they  came  to  the  river,  the  Other-one  was  enchanted  with  the 
wide  garden  she  saw  in  front  of  a  white  farmhouse.  It  made 
her  think  of  home,  with  its  masses  of  scarlet  geraniums,  big 
bed  of  fragrant  heliotrope,  its  clump  of  calla  lilies  growing 
in  the  basin  of  a  little  fountain. 

Beyond  the  river,  the  hills  closed  up  to  the  road.  Then  they 
passed  a  place,  where  great  heaps  of  the  shredded  fibre  of 
the  dwarf-palm  were  being  prepared  by  natives  for  shipping. 
Not  far  from  here  an  odor  of  rancid  oil  filled  the  air,  where 
was  an  olive  oil  mill.  Outside  lay  great  heaps  of  the  crushed 
olive  debris.  Now  the  road  went  on  up  hills,  where  was  cul- 
tivation on  their  flanks,  the  pale  rich  green  contrasting,  here 
and  there,  with  a  hill  ablaze  with  the  gold  of  the  genesta. 

[177] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

Beyond  were  deep  ravines,  across  which  engineering  had  built 
railroad  bridges.  Then  came  a  steep  hillside  where  a  Kabyle 
farmer  was  turning  up  the  rich  brown  soil  with  his  ancient 
plough.  The  road  dipped  down  again  and  showed  a  crescent 
of  rich  blue  sea. 

Presently  the  car  passed  over  the  Sebaou  River  —  not  a  long 
one,  and  now  a  dry  one  but  it  has  great  volume  of  water  at 
times,  owing  to  the  abundant  rains  that  fall  in  the  region 
where  it  flows.  At  length  Tizi-Ouzu  was  reached,  after  the 
climbing  capacity  of  the  car  had  been  tested  by  steep  inclines. 
The  somewhat  weary  and  hungry  party  descended  at  the 
Hotel  Lagarde,  with  its  dusty  garden,  where  a  lemon-tree  or 
two,  a  date-palm,  and  some  languid-looking  bushes  in  flower 
were  protected  from  the  invading  Arab  gamin  by  an  iron 
fence.  Here  the  travellers  had  been  told  they  would  find  much 
cleanliness  and  comfort.  The  Other-one  had  now  become 
resigned  to  whatever  fate  had  to  offer  in  the  matter  of  dirt, 
nevertheless  she  could  but  regard  the  little  untidy  dining- 
room,  blazing  with  the  usual  gaudy  French  posters,  with  dis- 
may. She  was  surprised  and  comforted,  however,  when  the 
shuffling  gargon  brought  in  a  really  delicious  luncheon. 

There  being  nothing  to  detain  the  party  in  the  dusty,  unin- 
teresting town  after  their  hunger  was  appeased,  they  pushed 
their  way  through  the  crowd  of  natives,  as  usual  packed 
around  the  car,  and  soon  Tizi-Ouzu  was  but  a  memory.  They 
wound  around  and  up  hills  the  color  of  deep  green  jade,  and 
as  they  doubled  a  curve  again,  they  saw  mountains  rising 
afar.  The  road  ran  on  not  far  from  Kabyle  villages,  built 
on  spurs  of  the  mountains,  or,  wherever  a  level  space  opened, 
there  were  seen  these  red-roofed,  chimneyless  and  windowless 
houses  looking  like  sproutings  of  red-capped  mushrooms. 
Near  the  houses  were  small  fields  of  young  grain,  a  soft 
green;  patches  of  fruit  trees,  now  with  pale  pink  and 
white  bloom;  and  many  gnarled  fig-trees  thrust  out  their 
twisted  branches ;  a  few  pepper-trees  and  the  stumps  of  ash- 
trees  showed  green  and  gray.  All  the  little  mountain  farms 
were    surrounded    and    protected    by    prickly-pear    hedges. 

[178] 


OFF    TO    FORT    NATIONAL 

Suddenly  they  saw  at  a  curve  in  the  road  the  great  peaks  of 
the  Djurdjuras,  their  snow  caps  glistening  in  the  sunlight, 
they  realized  they  were  entering  Great  Kabylia.  Afar,  great 
spurs  of  the  mountains  stretched  out;  tremendous  chasms 
rent  them,  as  if  opening  to  swallow  the  tiny  villages  on  the 
edges.  Below  them  the  party  could  see  the  road,  a  white 
serpentine  way,  ever  hard  and  most  excellent;  so  it 
seemed  here  a  very  heaven  for  motorists.  The  Other- 
one  noted  the  pale,  mauve  Roman  hyacinth  growing  in 
clefts  of  the  rock  by  the  roads.  Their  faint  sweet  odor 
was  in  the  air,  the  fine,  racy,  mountain  air  which  gave  one 
new  life.  They  passed  or  met  many  flashing-eyed,  fierce 
Kabyles  striding  along  with  a  proud,  free  gait. 

Again,  the  road  mounted  up  and  the  car  seemed  to  be  as 
high  as  the  eagles  fly.  Far  off  they  saw  the  red  roofs  of  Tizi- 
Ouzu  losing  themselves  in  the  distance.  A  narrow  green  val- 
ley spread  to  where  the  great  mountains  rose  to  their  halo 
of  snow.  High  up,  over  all,  a  great  bird  winged  his  way  in 
the  deep  blue  of  the  sky.  Down  and  round  a  curve  and  a 
group  of  Kabyle  children,  wrapped  in  multicolored  rags, 
jumped  from  the  wayside  suddenly,  gesticulating,  and  shriek- 
ing **Un  sou!  tin  soul  ** 

**  Little  wretches!  **  cried  the  Commander.  **  Even  up  here 
in  these  mountain  solitudes  they  have  learned  to  beg.  *  *  Still 
on,  and  the  great  chain  of  the  Djurdjuras,  cut  out  in  great 
gashes,  gleamed  like  quicksilver  with  their  snow-crowns. 
Beyond  and  beyond  are  folds  of  the  mountains,  some  black 
with  timbered  forests.  The  souls  of  the  travellers  were 
oppressed  with  all  the  grandeur  of  the  view.  No  words  passed 
between  them  now,  for  they  felt  how  imperfectly  words  could 
express  their  sensations. 

At  length,  on  a  high  point,  a  white  spot  —  Fort  National  — 
showed  against  the  blue  sky.  Nearer,  they  saw  the  wall 
with  its  seventeen  bastions. 

*'  The  citadel  certainly  looks  grim  enough  as  we  get 
nearer,**  said  the  Commander,  **  and  must  be  strong  enough 
for  defence,  in  case  of  trouble  with  these  independent,  undis- 

[179] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

ciplined  Kabyles,  but  a  few  guns  planted  around  on  those 
hills  would  soon  blow  it  to  pieces.  The  soldiers  here, —  who 
are  all  Zouaves,  I  am  told, —  have,  if  they  have  nothing  else, 
one  of  the  grandest  views  in  the  world.  Here  it  is  3,153  feet 
above  the  sea.*' 

The  road  now  ran  on  a  sort  of  terrace,  and  on  it  they  came 
to  the  ''  unique  little  village,^'  enclosed  in  its  walls  about 
twelve  feet  high  and  flanked  with  seventeen  bastions.  There 
are  two  entrances,  the  one  called  the  Djurdjura  Gate,  and 
the  other  the  Gate  of  Algiers,  by  which  the  Motorists  entered 
and  went  along  the  only  street  which  was  bordered  with  rag- 
ged-looking sycamore-trees,  with  their  white-spotted  trunks. 
There  was  a  crowd  of  natives  surging  through  the  town,  and 
contrary  to  the  custom  in  the  towns  through  which  the 
travellers  had  heretofore  passed,  these  Kabyles,  digni- 
fied and  solemn,  evinced  little  interest  in  the  motor. 
Adrian  stopped  his  car  before  the  plain-looking  Hotel 
des  Touristes.  Out  of  this  hurried  at  once,  a  plump 
young  French  woman,  followed  more  slowly  by  a  thin  man  in 
carpet  slippers.  In  reply  to  the  demand  for  rooms  the  young 
woman  was  desolated  to  an  extreme. 

'*  Alas!  Bashir,  the  so  well  known  courier,  had  engaged  all 
their  rooms  for  a  very  rich  American  monsieur  and  his 
family.'* 

**  Ask  her  to  crowd  up  the  rich  monsieur  and  give  us  a 
room  or  so.  She  can't  expect  us  to  sleep  in  the  street,  and 
this  seems  the  only  hotel  in  view,*'  exclaimed  the  Commander 
impatiently. 

**  Impossible!  "  returned  the  woman.  **  Bashir  will  not  be 
disappointed.  If  so,  he  comes  no  more.  He  must  have  all 
the  rooms.  There  is  another  hotel  but  so  poor,  so  small,  not 
like  this  elegant  auherge!  '* 

The  Other-one  saw  here  in  her  eyes  the  desire  to  secure 
these  people,  who  must  be  also  important,  judging  from  their 
fine  large  car,  and  Adrian,  such  a  beau  gargon.  The  man  in 
carpet  slippers  drew  near,  and  there  ensued  a  rapid  dialogue, 
beyond  the  powers  of  the  Other-one  to  understand,  punc- 

[180] 


FORT   NATIONAL 

tuated  with  many  shrugs  and  gestures.  Then  the  woman 
turned  to  them  and  said,  with  the  air  of  a  diplomat  who  has 
settled  a  most  delicate  and  difficult  matter : 

*  *  Monsieur  and  Madame  can  go  at  once  to  Fort  Michelet 
and  see  the  view,  most  magnificent.  When  they  return,  in 
two  hours,  they  will  find  rooms  so  large  and  comfortable,  such 
as  they  have  not  yet  had  in  Algeria." 

Then  she  turned  off,  dragging  the  man  with  her  and  leav- 
ing our  travellers  no  choice  but  to  take  her  advice,  which  they 
proceeded  to  do,  going  out  the  gate  opposite  that  by  which 
they  had  entered,  and  following  a  road  pointed  out  to  them, 
which  led  off  to  the  right.  This  road  ran  for  a  time  on  the 
south  flank  of  a  spur  of  the  mountain,  then  on  the  west  flank. 
All  along  there  was  a  superb  view  of  the  great  chain  of  the 
Djurdjuras,  the  tops  silvery  white,  the  clefts  deep  blue  in  the 
late  afternoon  sun.  They  saw  more  Kabyle  villages  crowded 
on  the  lesser  chain,  on  the  edge  of  precipices  and  apparently 
ready  to  slide  off  into  the  abyss.  All  around  them  was  green 
with  cultivation.  They  seemed  like  the  eyries  of  eagles,  and 
the  apparently  flourishing  life,  judging  by  the  numberless 
villages,  made  a  strong  contrast  with  these  great,  desolate, 
snow-capped  peaks  rising  to  heaven. 

**  I  wonder  why  we  see  so  many  ash-trees  which  seem  to 
have  been  pruned  so  much,  and  which  grow  along  the  edge 
of  their  farms,**  said  the  Commander.  **  Probably  for  shade 
in  the  summer.*' 

**  No!  My  book  says  that  the  sprouts  of  the  ash-tree  are 
used  by  the  Kabyles  to  feed  their  flocks  when  the  heat  of  the 
summer  dries  up  everything  else  that  is  green.  They  care- 
fully cut  off  the  leaves  and  twigs  for  that  purpose.  *  * 

The  car  sped  on,  the  scenery  seeming  more  and  more  grand ; 
the  great  peaks  rising  to  pierce  the  blue  sky,  like  giant  sen- 
tinels posted  along  the  way. 

Arriving  at  Fort  Michelet  they  found  it  an  insignificant 
settlement  of  small  houses  of  the  military  and  those  who  serve 
them.  From  here  the  travellers  could  see  better  the  culmi- 
nating peak  of  the  Djurdjuras,  Llella  Khadija,  named  for  the 

[181] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

wife  of  the  prophet.  It  is  a  great  pyramid,  silvered  with 
snow  nine  months  of  the  year.  There  is  a  shrine  near  the 
top,  they  were  told,  and  a  pilgrimage  to  it  is  considered  by 
a  Mohammedan  as  scarcely  less  meritorious  than  one  to 
Mecca. ' ' 

They  now  turned  back  toward  Fort  National,  where  they 
were  received  with  open  arms  by  the  astute  French  woman, 
who  led  them  into  the  hotel,  then  up  a  dirty  staircase,  and 
ushered  them,  with  flourishes,  into  the  rooms  ' '  so  large,  so 
comfortable.''  They  proved  to  be  but  one,  with  two  iron 
beds,  however,  covered  with  red  blankets,  which  possibly  gave 
the  * '  fine  air  ' '  mentioned.  The  rickety  washstand,  with 
small  supply  of  water  and  towels,  as  well  as  the  absence  of 
any  method  of  heating,  gave  small  promise  of  comfort,  espec- 
ially as  the  mountain  air  was  quite  sharp. 

However,  the  Other-one  lighted  the  antiquated  kerosene 
lamp  and  warmed  her  chilled  fingers,  then  went  to  look  from 
the  window  on  the  Kabyles,  wrapped  in  creamy  burnouses  and 
strutting  with  stately  gait  up  and  down  the  street,  turning 
it,  for  the  strauger,  who  was  never  weary  of  watching  them, 
into  a  unique  and  fascinating  place. 

The  pretty  Marguerite  came  up  after  dinner  that  night, 
full  of  the  praises  of  Bashir,  ^'  the  courier  for  the  rich  Mon- 
sieur American, ' '  whose  two  cars  arrived  late  with  great  noise 
and  bustle. 

*  *  Bashir  is  a  so  great  courier,  Madame !  He  knows  all.  He 
says  Monsieur  must  surely  go  to  one  of  the  Kabyle  villages. 
There  is  one  about  three  and  a  half  kilometres,  on  the  road  to 
Fort  Michelet,  but  one  must  go  on  donkeys  or  mules  there 
and  Monsieur  should  take  a  guide.  These  Kabyles  love  not 
to  have  strangers  go  to  their  houses." 

So  it  was  decided  that  this  particular  village,  which  is 
called  by  the  unpronounceable  name  of  Taourirt  Amokrane, 
should  be  visited,  and  an  old  Kabyle  guide  was  sent  for.  The 
next  morning  he  appeared  leading  a  pair  of  bony  mules,  just 
as  the  travellers  came  out  of  the  hotel.  The  Two  decided  not 
to  mount  the  animals  for  the  present. 

[182] 


A   KABYLE    VILLAGE 

The  view  became  more  and  more  glorious ;  the  great  gorges 
and  chasms,  blue  in  the  morning  light;  the  great  peaks, 
dominated  by  Llella  Khadija  with  her  snowy  head,  rose 
grandly  to  the  skies.  On  the  ridges,  crests,  and  flanks,  more 
and  more  Kabyle  villages  came  into  view,  and  their  patches 
of  cultivation,  with  their  fig  and  ash  trees  gave  green  touches 
to  the  soft  blue  and  deep  purples  of  the  mountains.  The  trav- 
ellers often  met  groups  of  Kabyles  coming  up,  fine,  splendid 
fellows,  some  of  them,  but  always  with  dirty  or  ragged  bur- 
nouses wrapped  well  around  them,  for  the  morning  air  was 
cold. 

Then  the  travellers  saw  a  large  village  afar,  on  a  distant 
crest,  and  the  Kabyle  pointed  it  out  as  a  village  of  the  Benni 
Yenni. 

**  Oh,  I  know  about  them,*'  said  the  Other-one;  **  the  guide 
at  the  hotel  spoke  of  this  tribe.  We  ought  to  visit  one  of  their 
villages  but  it  takes  a  day  to  go  and  come,  on  mules.  He  said 
these  are  very  interesting  people  to  see,  very  industrious,  and 
they  make  jewellery,  arms,  and  knives,  and  weave  cloths. 
Their  jewellery  is  very  curious  and  is  ornamented  with  filigree 
work  and  enamel.** 

A  village  showed  on  a  sharp  crest  at  a  little  distance  below, 
and  their  path  soon  curved  and  dipped  down  to  it.  The  wide 
path  ended  in  a  narrow  zig-zag  one,  very  stony  and  rough, 
leading  down  into  the  village  with  the  tiled-roof  houses  set 
in  the  most  irregular  fashion.  A  crowd  of  dirty  Kabyle 
boys  fell  upon  them  as  they  descended  the  path,  and  accom- 
panied them  everywhere,  like  annoying,  buzzing  flies.  They 
found  some  old  men  on  the  square  on  to  which  the  path 
opened.  These  were  bundled  up  in  burnouses  and  scowled 
fiercely  at  the  strangers.  But  alas !  all  the  women  outside  the 
houses  they  passed  disappeared  as  by  magic.  The  door  of 
each  house,  as  they  came  to  it,  was  slammed,  and  they  heard 
the  sound  of  wooden  bolts  drawn.  In  vain  the  guide  pounded 
on  each  door  and  shouted  some  phrases  in  Kabyle,  but  no 
door  opened. 

Farther  on  they  came  to  a  very  rough  path  dropping  down 

[183] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

by  some  houses.  The  guide  pointed  down  there  saying,  in  his 
very  imperfect  French,  ''  There  you  will  see  the  pottery.'^ 

The  potteries  consisted  of  one  small  house,  windowless  like 
all  the  rest  of  the  huts,  and  before  which  an  ancient  crone 
was  moulding  a  dark  clay  jar  by  hand,  turning  and  turning, 
smoothing  and  smoothing  it.  She  also  would  have  run  if  the 
guide  had  not  forcibly  detained  her,  and  made  her  continue 
her  work.  Then  she  was  induced  to  take  the  Two  into  a  small 
den  where  were  some  great  jars  ranged  along  the  wall,  in 
which  the  guide  said  were  grain,  lentils,  and  dried  figs.  There 
were  several  holes  opening  near  them  in  the  wall ;  these  were, 
he  told  them,  where  the  animals  —  which  are  kept  in  a  yard 
off  the  one  room  of  each  Kabyle  hut  —  could  be  fed. 

**  Quite  convenient,'*  said  the  Commander,  "the  dwellers 
here  need  not  turn  out  early  to  dress  and  feed  their  stock.'* 
In  this  place  the  old  crone  had  two  or  three  coarse  jugs,  of  no 
particular  shape,  and  which,  as  she  was  watching,  apparently 
for  a  chance  to  escape,  she  was  not  anxious  to  sell,  even  if 
the  Two  had  been  anxious  to  buy. 

Going  on  farther,  across  a  square,  they  came  to  a  rude 
building,  with  some  logs  laid  across  the  side,  for  seats,  the 
guide  said.  This  was  the  djemaa,  or  council  house,  which 
every  Kabyle  village  has,  where  the  people  assemble  for 
deliberation  and  decisions  about  those  matters  which  concern 
the  tribe.  On  the  crest  of  the  hill  was  a  rude  mosque,  which 
seemed  to  have  no  attraction  but  the  grand  view  from  the 
minaret.  The  guide  now  turned  up  another  narrow  rocky 
muddy  lane,  where  the  door  of  one  small  hut  was  open.  A 
pretty  young  woman  stood  outside,  holding  a  lively  brown 
baby  across  her  hips.  She  was  a  picture,  with  her  blue  cot- 
ton dress  caught  at  the  shoulders  with  great  silver  pins,  big 
silver  hoops  in  her  ears,  and  a  red  cloth  twisted  around  her 
head.  The  lively  baby  had  only  a  dirty  cloth  wrapped  around 
his  loins.  The  guide  began  a  quick  conversation  with  her, 
but  she  shook  her  head.  Hereupon  a  wrinkled  crone,  withered 
out  of  all  resemblance  to  a  woman,  hobbled  out  of  her  hut,  and 
with  her  he  seemed  to  have  more  success.     She  nodded  her 

[184] 


A   KABYLE    VILLAGE 

head,  which  was  bound  in  folds  of  dirty  cloth,  then  beckoned 
the  party  to  enter  the  house. 

**  Apparently  she  is  the  only  hospitable  one  in  the  village," 
exclaimed  the  Other-one.  **  I  suppose  she  is  proud  of  her 
house,  and  wants  strangers  to  see  it,  for  a  present  of  money.*' 

The  Commander  was  critically  examining  the  jewellery  of 
the  young  woman,  as  near  her  as  she  would  allow  him  to  come. 

**  It  *s  not  worth  any  bargaining,*'  he  said.  **  It  is  thin 
and  badly  made.** 

The  ancient  one  appeared  to  get  impatient  and  shook  her 
withered  old  head  vigorously. 

**  We  shall  go  in,**  said  the  old  Kabyle  guide,  "  but  Mon- 
sieur must  give  her  something.** 

**  Certainly,**  said  the  Commander.  "When  did  I  ever 
go  anywhere  in  this  country,  or  even  venture  to  look  at  a 
person  or  a  thing  without  giving  something?  '* 

They  were  obliged  to  stoop  to  get  in  through  the  rude 
wooden  door,  and  entered  into  a  dark  and  gruesome  room. 
There  being  no  windows,  the  place  had  the  gloom  of  twilight, 
especially  as  some  men  and  boys  now  appeared  and  crowded 
around  the  door,  so  shutting  out  what  little  light  might  have 
come  in  at  that  opening.  When  our  travellers  became  accus- 
tomed to  the  obscurity,  they  saw  they  were  in  a  low  room, 
divided  into  compartments  by  a  low  parapet  wall,  and  hav- 
ing a  hard  earthen  floor.  Ranged  along  the  wall  were  some 
huge,  high  pottery  jars,  evidently  containing  dried  fruit, 
grain,  lentils,  and  other  articles  of  food.  There  were  also 
some  low  benches  of  stone  with  mats  on  them.  At  one  end 
of  the  room  was  a  hole  where  were  a  few  embers,  and  two 
or  three  black  pottery  jars  near  it  showed  that  it  was 
the  family  cooking-place.  There  are  never  chimneys 
to  these  Kabyle  houses,  so  a  little  hole  in  the  roof  was 
the  only  place  for  the  smoke  to  escape.  Seeing  the  Other-one 
looking  curiously  at  the  hole,  a  little  boy  from  the  family 
group  who  stood  staring  at  the  invaders  ran  up  to  her,  and 
pointing  to  it,  exclaimed,  *'  Cous-cous!  "  She  at  once  under- 
stood that  here  this  universal  dish  was  cooked. 

[185] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

In  this  small  room  the  smoke  and  the  odors  from  the  filthy- 
people  and  from  the  cattle  just  outside,  were  intolerable.  The 
Commander  gave  one  disgusted  glance  into  the  interior  and 
then  turned  hastily  away.  Not  even  a  glimpse  of  the  jew- 
ellery, the  chains,  bracelets,  and  anklets  on  the  two  or  three 
women  in  the  cabin  could  attract  him  sufficiently  to  martyrize 
himself. 

The  Other-one  now  remained  for  a  mauvais  ten  minutes, 
and  discovered  the  bedroom  of  the  family  from  some  filthy 
rags  in  the  straw  at  one  corner  of  the  room.  The  old  crone 
stood  well  to  the  fore,  showing  her  toothless  gums  in  an  in- 
gratiating smile,  and  holding  out  her  hand  at  intervals.  It 
is  said  a  Kabyle  man  takes  but  one  wife,  and  when  she  is 
old  and  incapacitated  for  labor  she  has  the  care  of  her  grand- 
children. This  one  had  a  crowd  of  children  around  her,  and 
must  have  been  a  grandmother  for  several  centuries.  Soon 
the  crowd  at  the  door  began  to  invade  the  room;  the  odors 
became  stifling,  and  the  Lady,  unable  to  endure  it  any  longer 
and  hearing  an  imperative  command  from  her  lord,  hastily 
thrust  some  coins  in  the  outstretched  palm  of  the  antedeluvian 
woman  and,  with  the  aid  of  the  guide,  pushed  herself  through 
the  crowd  into  the  open,  where  she  found  the  Commander 
awaiting  her  with  some  impatience. 

The  decrepit  crone  came  out,  bearing  a  pottery  dish  with 
some  curdled  milk  in  it,  which  she  offered  to  the  Lady,  then 
tried  to  seize  her  hand,  evidently  to  press  her  own  withered 
lips  upon  it  in  her  joy  at  the  present  of  silver  pieces ;  but  the 
Other-one  escaped,  calling  to  the  guide : 

**  Tell  her  I  cannot  drink  milk.  It  poisons  me,  but  if  she 
will  let  me  have  a  picture  of  her  beautiful  self  to  show  my 
American  friends,  I  shall  be  so  happy !  ' ' 

So  the  old  woman  posed  herself  against  the  walls  of  her 
cabin,  and  here  the  reader  can  see  a  picture  of  her. 

Never  had  mountain  air  seemed  so  fresh,  so  pure,  so  full 
of  invigorating  balm  as  when  they  had  gotten  away  from  the 
Kabyle  village  and  begun  to  climb  the  hills  on  the  mules' 
backs.    The  hill  dropped  away  on  one  side  of  the  little  settle- 

[186] 


A   KABYLE   VILLAGE;    IN   THE   DJURDJUEA    MOUNTAINS 


A  KABYLE  AND  HIS  PKIMITIVE  PLOUGH 


A  DAY   OF  LEISURE 

ment  to  profound  depths  and  across  the  valley  the  mountains 
arose  in  all  their  glory. 

Against  the  sky  line  there  appeared  a  curious  sight.  A 
long  row  of  Mohammedans  with  their  backs  to  the  road,  their 
faces  toward  Mecca,  were  saying  their  prayers,  all  rising, 
bowing,  kneeling  at  the  same  time,  as  if  pulled  by  an  invisible 
cord.    Their  outline  against  the  sky  was  comical  in  the  extreme. 

All  the  way  was  full  of  interest.  Kabyle  farmers  were  at 
work  on  the  hillsides  with  their  primitive  ploughs.  The  men 
were  all  in  their  dirty  white  burnouses,  but  wherever  there 
were  women  or  little  girls  there  were  splashes  of  vivid  color 
in  their  dresses,  of  vivid  yellow  or  red  and  in  the  gay  ker- 
chiefs on  their  heads.  Village  after  village  opened  up  on  the 
distant  spurs  or  on  the  hills  rising  from  the  terraces  where 
the  road  wound.  Now  a  tiny  brown  girl,  swathed  in  a  blue 
gown,  ran  up  to  the  car,  which  stopped  for  a  moment,  to  offer 
a  necklace  of  green  beads.  The  child  smiled  with  joy  as  the 
lady  threw  out  to  her  a  franc  piece  in  exchange  for  the  neck- 
lace. There  was  always  something  to  keep  the  party  on  the 
qui  vive,  something  to  satisfy  their  sense  of  color.  Now  a 
Kabyle  woman  climbed  the  hill  from  the  little  river  over 
which  they  rolled.  She  was  a  picture  in  her  blue  draperies, 
a  scarlet  kerchief  bound  round  her  head,  a  brown  water  jar 
of  a  graceful  shape  held  upon  her  head  by  her  shapely  arms. 
She  walked  erect  and  stately,  with  a  grace  all  the  Kabyle 
women  seem  to  have  naturally.  Some  one  writes  of  these 
women :  **  They  have  the  beauty  of  a  highbred  animal,  or  the 
sculptured  bronze  ideal  replica  of  a  race.  They  are  types  of 
a  species  and  are  delightful  to  look  upon,  alike  in  face  and 
figure." 

The  car  bowled  down  to  the  valley  of  the  Sebaou,  now  a 
mere  thread  of  a  river,  which  they  crossed.  All  the  valley  was 
a  golden  green  with  the  young  barley  and  wheat  of  the  Kabyle 
farmer.  Queer,  wise-looking  storks  stood  here  and  there  on 
their  long  legs,  motionless,  or  searching  for  their  breakfast, 
looking  like  guardians  of  the  valley. 

At  thirty-six  kilometres  from  the  Fort,  they  passed  through 

[  187  ] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

the  small  town  of  Azaga  on  the  borders  of  the  beautiful  forest 
of  Bou-Hini.  They  had  seen  the  forests  on  the  mountain, 
sombre  spots,  like  the  shadow  a  cloud  casts  when  it  swallows 
up  the  sun.  The  road  ran  through  these  forests  of  fine  trees 
of  the  cork-oak.  Here  are  found,  also,  grand  specimens  of 
the  chestnut-oak  with  leaves  like  those  of  the  chestnut-tree, 
and  the  light  bark  of  the  trunks.  There  is  not  a  single  spec- 
imen of  it  found  in  European  forests. 

Somewhat  to  the  Other-one  *s  disappointment,  no  wild  ani- 
mals ever  showed  themselves  on  the  journey,  though  here  are 
wild  boars  in  plenty. 

Over  the  Col  de  Tagma  and  at  Col  de  Tigdint  the  culmi- 
nating point,  the  great  mountains  showed  themselves  once 
more,  and  there  was  a  glimpse  of  the  far  blue  sea.  Farther 
on  another  Kabyle  village  dropped  down  the  high  hill  at 
the  side  of  the  road.  Here  was  a  sight  that  thrilled  the  Com- 
mander and  made  him  leap  from  the  car  almost  before  Adrian 
could  stop  it.  There  was  a  Kabyle  woman  looking  like  a  pic- 
ture in  a  gay  red  dress,  and  a  yellow  cloth  bound  over  her 
head,  above  her  dark  eyes.  She  was  standing  ankle-deep  in  a 
brook  which  gurgled  down  the  roadside.  She  was  doing  her 
washing,  stamping  with  her  feet  on  some  rags  on  the  stones 
over  which  the  water  splashed.  Her  brown  feet  were  covered 
with  foam,  probably  from  the  soap  root  she  had  used  and 
flakes  of  it  floated  down  the  stream.  While  she  could  not  be 
considered  in  any  sense  a  beauty,  she  was  an  adorable  creature 
to  the  Commander;  for,  hanging  down  over  her  blue  draper- 
ies,—  which  were  caught  at  the  shoulder  with  enormous 
plaques  of  silver, —  she  wore  a  glorious  necklace  the  like  of 
which  he  had  not  before  beheld :  chains  of  silver  studded  with 
enamelled  medallions  and  with  longer  pendants  set  with  a 
green  stone  and  pieces  of  coral  in  bands  of  etched  silver, — 
a  veritable  gem,  the  work  of  an  artist. 

Tremblingly  the  Commander  drew  out  five  silver  five-franc 
pieces,  and  showed  them  to  her,  pointing  to  the  necklace.  She 
at  once  understood.  She  raised  three  fingers.  He  added  those 
to  the  ones  he  already  held.     The  woman  took  them  and 

[188] 


AWAY    TO    BOUGIE 

slowly  drew  off  the  necklace.  He  seized  it  and  fairly  galloped 
for  the  car  and  climbed  into  it.  The  Kabyle  woman  gave  a 
terrific  howl  and  leaped  out  of  the  water,  scattering  the  foam 
flakes  all  around.  She  rushed  up  to  the  car  as  Adrian  was 
about  to  turn  the  crank,  and  reaching  up  for  her  treasure,  re- 
luctantly handed  up  the  five-franc  pieces.  The  expression  of 
despair  on  the  Commander's  face  was  heart-rending.  He 
threw  the  necklace  at  her,  and  Adrian  was  about  to  move  on, 
when  the  woman  reached  up  to  grab  the  silver  and  proffered, 
at  the  same  time,  the  necklace.  She  was  torn  with  conflicting 
desires.  She  wanted  the  money,  and  she  wished  to  keep  her 
necklace. 

The  Commander  clasped  the  coveted  jewellery;  an  expres- 
sion of  perfect  joy  overspread  his  face  and  the  wheels  of  the 
car  began  to  turn.  Again  the  woman  rent  the  air  with  her 
shrieks  and  leaped  for  the  necklace,  throwing  the  silver  into 
the  car. 

**  She  *8  an  idiot!  '*  cried  the  irate  Commander.  **  Go  on, 
Adrian.'* 

"  Stop!  stop!  **  exclaimed  the  Other-one.  **  Do  let  me  get 
a  picture  of  a  woman  of  so  much  indecision  of  character. '  * 

The  woman  then  returned  to  her  washing,  with  her  neck- 
lace, and  calmed  down,  while  some  little  Kabyles,  attracted  by 
the  cries,  ran  up,  and  the  lady  **  snapped  **  them  all. 

Down  and  up,  then  down  again,  and  they  came  to  the  fer- 
tile valley  of  the  Soumman  and  passed  through  a  region  of 
great  vineyards.  Before  El  Kseur  they  passed  Tombeau  de  la 
Neige  and  its  sad  monument  to  the  French  soldiers  lost  in  a 
fearful  snow  storm.  After  a  smooth  run  of  some  kilometres, 
they  saw  before  them  the  symmetrical  Djebel  Gouraya  rising 
out  of  the  blue  sea,  at  the  foot  of  which,  and  running  up  in 
terraces,  is  Bougie  with  its  houses  of  white  and  pale  yellow, 
and  its  green  palms.  They  came  to  the  long  straight  street 
leading  into  the  town,  which  has  a  row  of  great  bushy  palms 
with  short  but  huge  scaly  trunks,  that  look  like  inverted  flower 
pots.  They  passed  by  the  harbor  and  the  ancient,  ruined, 
picturesque,  Saracenic  gate  of  the  old  mediaeval  wall,  rounded 

[189  1 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

the  hill  which  projects  into  the  sea  and  has  the  old  Turkish 
fort  on  it,  and  came  to  a  stop  before  a  modest  hotel  where  the 
manager  received  them  with  open  arms.  The  Other-one 
clasped  her  hands  with  content  when  they  were  ushered  into 
a  simple  little  room  of  satisfying  cleanness.  She  at  once  dis- 
covered that  the  windows  had  a  balcony  looking  across  the 
sea  to  the  mountains. 

The  Commander's  somewhat  weary  air  kindled  into  enthu- 
siasm as  he  looked  out  from  this  balcony  across  the  deep  blue 
Bay  of  Bougie,  full  of  the  dropping  sun 's  reflections,  to  where 
the  precipitous,  rugged  Babor  Mountains  rose.  The  sky  had 
light  and  floating  clouds,  which  cast  deep  shadows  on  the 
mountain  flanks,  and  on  these  were  tints  of  softest  purples, 
grays,  and  shimmering,  evanescent  greens.  The  clefts  were 
all  blue-black.  These  all  rose  to  the  dazzling  snow  at  the  top, 
with  silvered  peaks  beyond  and  beyond.  The  late  afternoon 
sun,  dropping  down,  had  begun  to  tinge  them  with  rose  and 
gold  into  a  great  glory,  and  the  water  caught  all  the  colors 
and  reflected  them  back  with  a  softened  radiance. 

When  they  had  silently  gazed  for  a  while,  the  Com- 
mander slipped  away.  Later,  he  returned  full  of  plans  and 
information. 

*'  I  have  interviewed  the  manager,'*  he  said.  *'  He  is  a 
German,  but  speaks  good  English  and  seems  to  be  intelligent 
and  well  informed.  He  is  most  enthusiastic  over  this  town 
and  glories  in  its  situation  and  the  magnificent  views,  though 
these  are  pretty  much  all  it  has,  I  think  from  what  he  says, 
for  the  ordinary  tourist,  at  least.  There  are  no  special  things 
to  visit  here,  except  possibly  some  of  the  ancient  forts.  He 
considers  it  an  ideal  place,  however,  for  people  who  leave 
home  to  avoid  the  cold  weather.  Built  on  the  slope  of  Mount 
Gouraya,  it  is  well  protected  from  north  and  east  winds,  but 
it  has  a  moist  climate  and  it  is  owing  to  this  that  the  vegeta- 
tion flourishes  so  well.  Though  warm  in  summer,  the  climate 
is  extremely  agreeable  in  w^inter  and  spring.  You  see  how 
mild  it  is  now  here.  There  are  excursions  up  the  mountain 
with  the  fort  at  the  top,  twenty-two  hundred  feet  above  the 

[190] 


AWAY   TO   BOUGIE 

sea.  There  are  many  Roman  remains  for  the  archaeologist  to 
study.  There  is  a  glorious  ride  to  Cape  Carbon,  a  mass  of 
red  rock  jutting  into  the  sea.  One  great  rock  forms  a  natural 
arch  and  the  sea  flows  through  it.  It  is  a  natural  protection 
for  fishermen  in  distress.  Then  there  are,  of  course,  Kabyle 
villages  to  visit,  if  one  has  a  taste  for  that  sort  of  thing,  after 
once  seen.  This  is  the  Kabylia  of  the  Babors,  as  distinct  from 
Kabylia  of  the  Djurdjuras.  A  great  excursion  is  to  — 
(pronounce  it  if  you  can).  Here  it  is,  written  in  my  notebook 
—  Djidjelli.  A  magnificent  road  has  been  built  to  that  place, 
on  the  cliffs  overhanging  the  sea,  and  travellers  say  that  it 
rivals  the  Corniche  Road.  There  are  caves  to  visit  on  the 
way,  with  stalactites  white  as  snow.  So  I  have  planned  for  a 
day's  excursion  to  this  unpronounceable  place  to-morrow,  and 
we  must  get  off  early  in  the  morning. '  * 

**  Now  do  sit  down,'*  said  the  Lady,  '*  and  I  will  tell  you  as 
briefly  as  I  can,  the  little  I  have  gleaned  about  this  fascinat- 
ing town.  It  was  an  important  place  in  the  time  of  the  Carth- 
aginians, and  naturally  came  into  the  hands  of  the  Romans 
when  Carthage  fell.  The  Berbers  occupied  the  city  in  the 
eleventh  century,  and  raised  it  to  a  great  pitch  of  splendor 
and  wealth.  I  suppose  it  always  was  a  place  greatly  to  be 
desired  on  account  of  its  situation.  Khair-ed-Din,  of  course, 
tried  his  hand  at  occupying  it,  but  was  unsuccessful.  The 
Turks  came  in,  in  the  sixteenth  century,  and  there  was  war 
and  piracy  for  three  hundred  years.  When  Algiers  was  oc- 
cupied by  the  French,  the  Mzaia  Kabyles  held  Bougie  and  the 
French  General  Trezel  drove  them  out. 

**  Do  you  know,"  said  the  Lady  as  she  followed  the  Com- 
mander out  for  their  promenade  in  the  town,  **  that  this  town 
gave  the  word  bougie  —  French  for  candle?  They  were  first 
made  and  exported  from  here." 

The  pair  walked  up  the  Rue  Trezel,  the  main  street. 
There  are  many  little  shops  on  both  sides  of  the  way, 
some  of  them  rather  fanciful,  others  dark  and  grimy.  There 
were  many  Kabyles,  Arabs,  a  sprinkling  of  French,  with  Ital- 
ian and  Maltese  sailors.    The  whole  town  had  the  air  of  those 

[191] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

ancient  towns  which  seem  bewildered  when  they  are  restored 
and  have  put  on  modern  ways.  The  street  goes  up  to  a  wide 
square  which  overlooks  the  town,  the  ancient  ruined  gate,  the 
harbor,  and  the  stern  mountains  across  the  gulf.  There  is  a 
balustrade  at  the  end,  where  the  rocky  cliff  drops  precipitously 
down  to  the  lower  town.  The  square  seems  to  be  the  main 
promenade,  and  some  natives  were  lounging  there  in  their 
picturesque  dress,  giving  it  the  real  look  of  the  East.  The 
Commander  and  his  companion  went  to  lean  over  the  parapet 
wall  and  look  across  to  the  blue  bay,  dark  now,  but  yet  full  of 
crimson  reflections,  with  the  rugged  battlemented  mountains 
of  Babor  and  Tababor  rising  into  the  evening  sky. 

**  I  know,"  said  the  Other-one,  *'that  all  this  region  is 
called  little  Kabylia  or  the  Kabylia  of  the  Babors.  The  peo- 
ple belong  to  the  Berber  race  but  do  not  have  all  the  character- 
istics of  the  other  Kabyles  of  the  Djurdjuras.  The  population 
is  not  so  dense  here  on  account  of  the  thick  forests  which  cover 
the  flanks  of  the  hills  and  mountains.  Also  the  people  are 
much  poorer  and  less  industrious. ' ' 


[192] 


CHAPTER   XI 

A  TRIP    TO    DJIDJELLI 

AT  the  sunset  hour  the  Other-one  had  thought  the  moun- 
tains and  the  bay,  resplendent  with  the  tints  of  the  sink- 
ing sun,  could  never  be  so  beautiful  at  any  other  time.  How- 
ever, in  the  early  morning,  when  the  tourists  left  Bougie 
nestling  in  its  green  setting  under  Mount  Gouraya  with  the 
white  fort  on  its  crest;  with  the  picturesque  ruins  of  the  old 
Turkish  fort  on  the  overhanging  rock  above  the  harbor,  and 
the  old  Saracenic  Gate,  with  its  festoons  of  vines  and  its 
swaying  grasses, —  it  seemed  nothing  could  exceed  the  loveli- 
ness of  this  morning  view.  The  great  serrated  range,  its 
base  swathed  in  a  filmy  veil  of  fog ;  glistening  peaks  piercing 
the  pale  sky  beyond ;  the  green-blue  bay  with  lights  on  it  like 
burnished  silver  —  made  an  incomparable  picture,  never  to 
be  forgotten. 

The  road,  always  smooth  and  hard,  led  past  enormous  vine- 
yards stretching  to  the  mountain  bases,  and  then  approached 
the  sea.  Farther  on,  looking  back,  the  voyagers  saw  a  long 
line  of  beach  fringed  with  the  foam  of  the  waves.  The  sea 
here  had  pearly  tints.  Out  of  the  distant  mist  a  fishing-boat 
spread  its  lateen  sail  to  catch  the  morning  breeze.  Now  the 
road  ran  through  a  tunnel  under  a  great,  piled-up  mass  of 
rocks.  The  sea  hurled  itself  against  them,  bathing  their  bases 
in  foam  and  casting  up  a  fine  spray.  ^lore  vineyards  as  the 
road  fell  away  from  the  sea,  and  flock  after  flock  of  sheep  and 
goats  were  guarded  by  their  Kabyle  shepherds,  picturesque  in 
creamy  burnouses.  Groups  trudged  along  the  road,  with 
sometimes  a  woman  or  two,  with  trailing  children.  Up  then, 
to  the  great  rocky  Cape  of  Aokas  to  be  greeted,  when  past  it, 
by  another  glorious  view.  Back  of  them  they  could  see  Bougie 
disappearing  in  the  misty  west.     Now  the  hills  folded  them- 

[193] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

selves  back  and  a  green  plain  rolled  to  the  sea.  Then  the  car 
flashed  through  a  primitive  town,  leaving  the  few  loungers 
outside  the  little  cabins,  staring  open-mouthed.  Down  in 
moist  places,  clumps  of  iris  raised  their  pale  blue  blossoms, 
and  masses  of  oleander  gave  promise  of  abundant  bloom  in 
their  season.  The  hills  beyond  were  golden  with  the  blossom- 
ing broom.  A  forest  now  succeeded,  shutting  them  away 
from  far-reaching  vistas.  Beyond  it  a  road  turned  off  to  the 
left,  which  led  up  again  to  the  sea ;  now  more  piled  up  rocks, 
and  the  travellers  looked  down  from  precipitous  heights  to 
the  blue-green  water. 

**It  is  a  wonderful  route!'*  exclaimed  the  Commander; 
**  magnificent  scenery  and  a  hard,  perfect  road.*' 

There  were  more  tunnels  through  which  to  pass.  Always 
the  rocks  below  were  edged  with  foam,  though  the  sea  was 
calm.  In  some  masses  of  rock,  the  color  was  an  ochre  yellow, 
in  others,  gray.  These  are  called  the  Grandes  Falaises; 
through  these  the  tunnel  opened  to  a  broader  road  and  a 
balustrade  of  iron  guarded  it  from  the  precipitous  descent 
to  the  sea.  Here  the  Commander  and  the  Lady  stepped  out 
of  the  car  to  lean  over  the  balustrade,  and  try  to  catch 
the  last  glimpse  of  Bougie.  The  fog  had  now  lifted 
and  the  sky  had  lost  its  flaky  clouds,  and  was  a 
deep  blue.  Down  dropped  a  sea-gull  from  the  dizzy 
height  of  the  rocks  above  the  road.  He  dipped  his  wings  in 
the  azure  sea,  and  flew  across  the  water,  a  creature  of  the 
foam  and  rocks.  The  road  now  descended  to  contrasting 
slopes,  green  with  early  grain,  then  climbed  again  to  where 
cultivation  ceased,  wild  grasses  waved  in  the  breeze,  and 
lentisque  bushes  thrust  their  thorny  masses  out  from  rocks. 
Again  to  the  sea,  which  had  long  stretches  of  calm  water  and 
many  little  bays,  indigo  blue,  indenting  the  coast. 

At  fifty-four  kilometres  they  came  to  Mansourah,  a  tiny 
town  of  colonists.  It  must  have  been  the  site  of  a  flourishing 
Roman  town,  for  near  the  road  and  up  the  hill,  can  be  seen 
interesting  Roman  ruins ;  broken  columns,  segments  of  frieze, 
fragments  of  capitals  and  conglomerate  masses  of  brick  work 

[194] 


A   TRIP   TO   DJIDJELLI 

and  small  stones.  Under  a  great  mass  of  rock  farther  on,  a 
door  opened  in  this  wall  at  the  right.  Near  it  stood  an  Arab 
in  burnous  and  scarlet  fez. 

**  Where  can  that  door  lead?  "  asked  the  Commander. 

The  man  replied  that  it  was  a  beautiful  grotto  which  had 
been  discovered  in  blasting  the  rock  for  the  road,  and  it  could 
be  seen  under  his  guidance  for  a  franc  a  person.  It  is  called, 
he  told  them  further,  ''  Rhar-Adim,"  or  **  The  Marvellous 
Grotto.'* 

The  Motorists  plunged  down  some  stone  steps  dripping  with 
moisture ;  then  the  Arab  ignited  some  magnesium  wire,  and  a 
wonderful  scene  opened  before  their  astonished  eyes.  It 
seemed  as  if  they  had  been  introduced  into  a  hall  of  the 
gnomes  or  fairies,  decorated  for  a  great  fete.  Wonderful 
stalactites  white  as  snow  glistened  in  the  flaming  lights  as  if 
covered  with  diamond  dust;  they  resembled  bunches  of  fruit, 
clusters  of  flowers,  and  other  more  fantastic  objects.  Stalag- 
mites rose  from  the  floor  of  the  cave,  some  like  organ  pipes, 
others  like  weird  statues.  Indeed  the  imaginative  could  fit 
them  to  any  object. 

**  It  is  one  of  the  most  beautiful  caves  I  ever  saw,*'  the 
Commander  exclaimed  in  admiration.  **  The  unique  beauty 
is  its  freshness ;  none  of  the  stalactites  have  been  blackened  by 
the  smoke  of  torches,  as  in  many  other  caves.  The  only  one 
approaching  it  we  have  seen  in  our  travels  is  the  one  at 
Luray,  in  Virginia.  The  Mammoth  Cave,  you  know,  is  won- 
derful in  extent,  but  has  no  stalactites  or  stalagmites  like 
these.  And  what  ages  to  form  these!  Water,  with  lime  in 
solution,  percolating  drop  by  drop,  through  crevices  and 
cracks  into  the  cave,  or  the  rain  water  seeping  through  the 
lime  rock  of  the  roof.** 

They  climbed  up  the  slippery  steps  and  resumed  their  seats 
in  the  motor  with  a  dazed  feeling. 

At  seventy-six  kilometres  they  passed  Cape  Cavallo  with  its 
little  red  island  anchored  in  front,  the  road  hanging  sus- 
pended on  the  great  rock  overhanging  the  sea.  Down  again 
they  rolled  to  pass  into  a  forest  of  the  sturdy  African  pine, — 

[195] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

the  Abies  or  Pinsape, —  and  the  air  had  their  balsamic  odor 
added  to  the  freshness  of  the  sea  breeze. 

It  was  all  too  soon,  such  had  been  the  glories  of  the  route, 
when  they  swung  into  Djidjelli,  happy  and  hungry.  It  is  a 
small  town  with  the  usual  long  street  of  little  white  and  pink 
houses  with  balconies  overlooking  it.  It  is  built  on  the  shore 
of  the  bay  a  little  east  of  the  old  town,  which  was  destroyed 
by  a  tremendous  earthquake  shock  in  1856.  Once  there  was 
an  important  Roman  colony  here.  In  1664  some  French 
troops  were  stationed  here  in  order  to  keep  the  pirates  and 
the  Kabyles  in  check.  A  large  force  of  Turkish  troops  ar- 
rived from  Algiers,  and  dissensions  arising  between  the 
French  and  Maltese  commanders,  the  troops  became  demor- 
alized and  the  French  troops  suffered  a  terrible  defeat. 

At  the  little  hotel  the  Lady  had  literally  to  be  pulled  by 
main  force  through  the  Kabyles  and  Arabs  who  at  once 
packed  around  it.  At  the  door,  a  plump  and  pleasant-faced 
young  French  landlady  received  them  with  open  arms,  and 
led  them,  as  select  guests,  to  a  small  room  off  the  main  dining- 
room,  which  was  full  of  a  loud-talking,  gesticulating,  smoking 
crowd. 

The  landlady  was  burning  to  talk,  and  hovered  near,  while 
a  bright-looking  Arab  boy,  in  w^hite  coat  and  red  fez,  laid  the 
table  deftly  for  two,  and  seemed  to  have  mi;ch  pride  in  his 
skill.  The  landlady  was  solicitous  that  all  should  be  as 
Monsieur  and  Madame  desired,  but  after  the  very  good  ome- 
lette had  been  served,  she  could  wait  no  longer;  and,  full  of 
her  subject,  began  to  relate  that  a  few  days  ago  a  most  dread- 
ful event  had  taken  place.  A  miserable  Arab  had  killed  a 
Frenchman  living  in  the  town.  The  Arabs  and  Kabyles  were 
wicked,  vicious  wretches.  No  one  was  safe  from  their  hands. 
It  had  been  decided  to  make  a  notable  example  of  this  one. 
He  was  having  a  trial  to-day.  That  was  why  the  town  was 
so  full  of  people,  Kabyle  and  Arab  chiefs  too,  as  well  as  oth- 
ers. Who  knew  what  might  happen !  Some  terrible  quarrels 
and,  perhaps,  bloodshed,  alas !  However,  it  was  a  most  excel- 
lent thing  for  the  hotel.    It  was  full  to-day,  and  all  were  so 

[  196  ] 


A  KABYLE  WOMAN  FASHIONING 

POTTERY   JAES,    AT 

TAOURIRT-AMOKEANE 


BARGAINING  FOR  JEWELLERY  NEAR  A  KABYLE  VILLAGE 


A  TRIP  TO  DJIDJELLI 

happy  over  the  most  delicious,  most  unexcelled  dejeuner.'* 
Then  she  bustled  away  to  impart  this  to  some  other 
newcomers. 

"  I  don't  wonder  the  natives  sometimes  resent  the  brutal 
treatment  they  get  from  some  of  the  ignorant  colonists  and 
the  bragging  soldiers/*  said  the  Commander. 

When  the  repast  **  so  delicious  '*  was  over  and  a  fee  given 
the  bright-eyed  Arab  boy  which  made  his  eyes  still  brighter, 
the  Commander  (as  there  was  nothing  of  special  interest 
in  the  town  and  the  crowds  were  too  dense  anyway  for  a  walk ) 
gave  the  order  to  march.  They  pushed  themselves  with  diffi- 
culty out  to  their  motor  and  were  about  to  start,  when  the 
landlady,  with  an  important  air,  came  bustling  out  to  ask  "  if 
Monsieur  would  be  so  very  obliging  as  to  allow  a  young 
lawyer,  very  comme  il  faut,  to  ride  back  in  the  automobile  to 
Bougie.  Imperative  duty  called  him,  and  otherwise  he  could 
not  get  back  until  so,  so  late.*' 

The  kind-hearted  Commander  was  ready  to  oblige,  even  to 
giving  up  his  cherished  front  seat  to  the  slender  Frenchman 
with  pointed  beard  (and  shoes  as  well)  and  thin  waxed  mus- 
tache turned  sharply  up.  The  little  man  beamed  with  con- 
tentment as  he  climbed  quickly  to  the  honorable  front  seat, 
bowing  politely  to  Monsieur  and  Madame.  When  they  came 
to  Cape  Cavallo,  with  its  little  red  island  before  it,  the  sea  was 
sparkling  as  if  millions  of  diamonds  were  spread  upon  it,  for 
every  facet  of  the  waves  reflected  the  rays  of  the  sun,  which 
had  just  come  out  from  the  embrace  of  a  dark  cloud.  As  they 
were  passing  the  forest  the  stranger  turned  to  the  Commander 
and  the  Lady. 

**  It  is  only  two  weeks  ago  that  a  large  panther  was  shot 
and  brought  down  from  the  mountain  near  here.'* 

"  Then  there  are  real  panthers  here!  "  said  the  Other-one. 
**  To  think!  In  passing  through  that  forest,  one  might  have 
leaped  on  the  car  and  dragged  us  off,  and  we  would  have  had 
a  sure  enough  adventure!  But  tell  me,  please,  Monsieur, 
about  the  adventure  at  Djidjelli,  and  if  the  Arab  had  some 
excuse  for  what  he  did.** 

[  197  ] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

The  lawyer  looked  mystified.  '*  I  do  not  know  to  what 
Madame  refers, ' '  he  said  politely. 

*  *  Why,  of  course,  to  the  killing  of  the  Frenchman  by  an 
Arab.    You  came  for  the  trial,  surely?  " 

*  *  Nothing  of  this  sort  has  happened  this  season  to  my  knowl- 
edge, Madame.** 

'*  But  the  crowds  there?  '* 

**  It  is  market  day,  Madame,  and  hundreds  of  natives  come 
to  it." 

*  *  But  the  landlady  of  the  hotel  told  me  all  about  the  mur- 
der !    "Why  should  she  tell  me  such  a  falsehood !  * ' 

The  Frenchman  smiled  and  shrugged  his  shoulders. 

The  car  rolled  on  and  they  passed  a  grotto  which  the  sea 
had  broken  open  in  a  time  of  great  tempest.  Here,  huge 
stalactites  of  an  ochre  color  hung  down.  *'  It  is  called  the 
*  Tomb  of  the  Lion, ' '  *  said  the  lawyer. 

The  light  was  changing,  for  the  clouds  which  had  been 
gathering  for  some  time  were  reaching  great  gray  plumes 
across  the  sky ;  and  down  the  coast  towards  Bougie  there  was 
a  line  of  a  thicker  fringe  of  foam,  from  the  breakers  beating 
on  the  shore.  The  mountains  became  ethereal  and  dream-like, 
and  the  small  bays  and  inlets  were  dark  sapphire  blue.  In 
the  west,  the  sky  had  a  lemon  yellow  tint,  and  Cape  Carbon 
stood  up  black  against  it.  It  began  to  rain  before  the  great 
rock  of  Cape  Aokas  loomed  up,  and  everything  seemed  to 
dissolve  in  mist. 

Before  they  reached  Bougie,  the  night  was  falling,  but  the 
rain  had  ceased,  and  Mount  Gouraya  came  out  of  the  mist  with 
the  twinkling  lights  of  the  town;  and  it  looked  like  a  great 
black  animal  at  rest  upon  the  water,  the  gleam  from  the  light- 
house on  the  point  being  its  enormous  eye.  The  water  of  the 
bay  held  the  tints  of  the  western  sky  long,  as  if  reluctant  to 
give  them  up,  but  the  night  had  come  when  the  car  rolled  past 
the  old  Saracenic  Gate  and  stopped  before  the  cheerfully 
lighted  hotel.  Almost  before  they  stopped,  the  lawyer  leaped 
to  the  ground,  and  bowing  his  thanks  with  his  hand  on  his 
heart,  disappeared  in  the  darkness. 

[198] 


CHAPTER  XII 

OFF  TO  CONSTANTINE  BY  SETIP,  AND  THE  GORGE  OF 
CHABET-EL-AKRA 

GOING  from  Bougie,  the  road  is  the  same  as  that  to  Djid- 
jelli  for  fifty-six  kilometres.  At  Souk-et-Tnin,  it  turns 
off  to  the  right.  The  next  morning,  at  a  fairly  early  hour,  our 
Motorists  took  this  road,  giving  a  regretful  glance  toward  the 
route  for  Djidjelli.  It  wound  through  a  wooded  valley  sur- 
rounded by  magnificent  mountains.  There  were,  all  along, 
small  farms.  As  they  rolled  by,  small  native  children  ran  out 
from  the  wayside,  threw  bunches  of  wild  violets  into  the  car 
and  shouted  for  sous. 

The  road  ascended  from  the  valley,  and  great  serrated  rocks 
thrust  themselves  suddenly  forward.  Here  was  the  entrance 
to  the  Chabet-el-Akra,  or  the  Gorge  of  Death,  the  gloomy  defile 
between  mountains  five  thousand  to  six  thousand  feet  high. 
The  car  entered  the  narrow  opening,  where  the  rocks  seemed 
to  rise  to  the  sky  until  only  a  strip  of  it  could  be  seen.  Just 
at  this  entrance  is  an  inscription:  Travaux  Executes 
1863-70.  The  road  kept  to  the  left,  but  farther  on  crossed 
by  a  bridge  over  the  foamy  river  which  boils  and  plunges  on 
the  gray  rocks,  as  it  forces  its  way  along.  As  the  car  pene- 
trated more  and  more  into  the  gloomy  pass,  our  Motorists 
became  silent,  oppressed  by  the  solemn  grandeur  of  the  sur- 
roundings. They  reached  a  huge,  shelving  rock.  The  road 
wound  under  it,  wet  with  the  water  dripping  down.  Sud- 
denly Adrian  slowed  his  car ;  around  the  rock  came  a  train  of 
camels  with  great  panniers  hung  to  them  filled  to  the  brim. 
They  passed  the  motor  disdainfully  swaying  their  awkward 
heads  from  side  to  side.  After  them  came  a  troop  of  dark- 
skinned  men,  with  fierce  eyes,  their  white  hdiks  bound  to  their 
heads  with  ropes  of  camel's  hair.    Trailing  after  them  was  a 

[199] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

withered  old  woman,  a  ragged  cloth  pulled  around  her.  As 
the  Commander  saw  her,  he  gave  an  exclamation  and  slid 
from  the  car.  * '  What  is  it  ? ' '  called  the  Other-one.  *  *  Surely 
she  has  no  bracelet  or  rare  necklace.'' 

* '  No,  but  she  is  wearing  a  fine  old  silver  plaque  hanging 
down  on  her  skinny  chest.    I  will  buy  it  if  I  can. ' ' 

*'  Poor  old  wretch!  Please,  do  leave  her  her  one  piece  of 
jewellery!  *' 

Then  under  the  dripping  rock  in  the  gloomy  gorge  ensued 
a  short  and  silent  bargaining.  The  old  woman  succumbed  to 
the  sight  of  the  two  silver  pieces,  drew  off  the  solitary  plaque, 
secreted  the  money,  and  hurried  off  after  the  snarling  camels. 

*  *  Look  on  the  right  for  monkeys !  ' '  cried  the  Other-one, 
after  consulting  her  book.  * '  This  says  they  are  seen  here ; 
also  eagles  and  wild  pigeons  fly  up  and  down.'* 

However,  no  monkeys  were  seen  amongst  the  thick  foliage 
of  the  mountains,  just  across  the  river,  though  a  pigeon  or  two 
dipped  down  from  the  crevices  in  the  rocks,  like  flecks  of  mist. 
Now  the  mountains  came  so  close  together  that  it  seemed  the 
road  must  be  crushed  between  th^em;  then  they  opened  out, 
and  a  great  mountain  rose  in  front  as  if  to  bar  the  road.  It 
was  shaped  like  a  sugar  loaf.  Indeed  the  French  call  it  Pain 
de  Sucre.  Farther  on  there  is  another  inscription,  recalling 
the  first  soldiers  who  passed  through  the  Chabet-el-Akra.  It 
was  a  relief  to  come  out  of  the  gloom  into  the  sunlight,  as  the 
space  widened  and  the  rocks  at  the  entrance  of  the  gorge  soon 
disappeared.  The  road  passed  a  little  hamlet  and  the  sign, 
Takitount,  recalled  it  as  the  name  of  an  excellent  bottled 
water  which  the  travellers  had  had  at  some  of  the  hotels. 

Now  came  another  train  of  camels  with  full  bags  of  striped 
camel's  hair  hanging  from  their  sides,  their  wild-looking  rid- 
ers swaying  with  the  long  strides  of  the  discontented-looking 
animals.  Adrian  with  some  difficulty  extricated  his  car  from 
the  entangling  mass,  and  the  Kabyle  drivers  added  to  the  con- 
fusion, with  their  shouts  and  poundings  of  the  bewildered 
animals.  A  cold  wind  sprung  up,  and  the  sky  became  leaden 
in  tone.     Drops  of  rain  pattered  on  the  roof  of  the  car. 

[200] 


w 
o 

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STOKKS'    NESTS;    ON    THE   EOAD    TO 
CONSTANTINE 


■  .. 

'1^"^n9H^, 

^gitlgtU^^^aM 

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^^m 

,' 

-mm^M 

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I  '      M 

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!:>-'••-—'-. 

.    --    .*i    >  Jfa...- 

A  KABYLE  HUT.  LITTLE  KABYLIA 


OFF  TO  CONSTANTINE 

Around,  all  was  gray  desolation.  The  car  rolled  down  the 
curving  road  to  the  small  settlement  of  Fermantou.  Just  be- 
yond, over  a  river  of  the  same  name,  two  roads  fork,  and 
both  lead  to  Setif.  The  one  at  the  right  is  longer  but  the 
descents  are  not  so  steep.  At  the  other,  which  crosses  the 
ridge  of  Belair,  relying  on  his  good  chauffeur  and  car, 
the  Commander  took  the  steeper  road  and  found  it  not  so  bad 
as  painted,  and  five  kilometres  beyond  they  sighted  the  walla 
of  Setif,  where  they  were  to  lunch.  Here  is  a  big  garrison. 
When  they  passed  the  great,  bare  buildings,  some  native  sol- 
diers were  manoeuvring  in  an  extensive  parade  ground  at 
the  right.  Passing  in  under  the  Bougie  Gate,  the  travellers 
found  in  the  streets  a  crowd  of  Arabs  and  Kabyles,  an  undu- 
lating mass  of  hdiks  and  burnouses.  Trees  are  planted  along 
the  streets,  and  there  are  many  little  shops  and  small  balco- 
nied houses.  As  they  stopped  at  the  hotel,  a  crowd  of  ragged 
gamins  settled  around  like  a  cloud  of  flies,  and  tried  to  pull 
off  the  baggage  until  some  well-directed  blows  from  the  Com- 
mander's whip  sent  them  flying  off.  As  the  Other-one  arose 
to  gather  up  her  small  belongings,  she  heard  a  sonorous  b'ell- 
like  voice  uttering  some  Arabic  phrases,  high  above  the  tumult 
of  the  street.  It  fell  on  her  ears  like  restful  music.  Looking 
up,  she  saw  the  car  was  not  far  from  a  mosque,  and  it  was  the 
muezzin  she  heard,  calling  from  the  minaret  the  faithful  to 
noon  prayer. 

The  town  has  not  much  interest  for  tourists.  -  The  mosque 
is  very  plain,  though  old.  The  town  is  built  on  the  site  of  the 
Roman  town  of  Sitifis.  Some  Roman  remains  have  been 
gathered  into  a  small  .museum  on  the  Orleans  Promenade. 
The  country  around  is  very  fertile  and  the  vast  plains  to  the 
east  produce  cattle  and  cereals  in  abundance. 

At  once,  after  the  rather  meagre  repast,  our  travellers  set 
out  for  Constantine,  a  distance  of  one  hundred  and  thirty- 
eight  kilometres,  by  the  way  of  Saint  Arnaud  and  Kroubs. 


201] 


CHAPTER  XIII 

ON  THE  ROAD,  AND  CONSTANTINE 

THE  road,  for  some  kilometres,  lay  on  a  high  and  barren 
plateau,  with  the  mountains  far  to  the  right.  As  the  car 
rolled  on  over  the  rather  uninteresting  way,  suddenly  there 
came  floating  down  from  the  sky  a  succession  of  delicious 
liquid  trills,  which  continued  for  a  time,  but  fainter  and 
fainter,  high  up  in  the  heavens.  Then,  before  the  sound  had 
ceased,  another  rain  of  liquid  music  dropped  down  to  earth. 

*  *  Oh,  listen !  '  *  cried  the  Other-one.  *  *  How  exquisite !  It 
is  the  larks  that  are  singing  like  the  angels  in  heaven,  the  sky 
lark!'* 

As  they  went  on,  one  bird  after  another,  sometimes  a  chorus 
of  them,  rising  from  the  plains  to  the  sky,  sang  as  if  their 
little  hearts  were  bursting  with  love  and  happiness. 

To  the  plains  succeeded  long  meadows  where  were  many 
storks;  some  were  flying  off,  their  long  legs  folded  under 
them ;  others  were  grubbing  in  the  short  grass  for  their  break- 
fasts, and  some  wise-looking  old  fellows  stood  meditating  on 
one  leg;  when  they  heard  the  car  they  spread  their  great 
wings  and  were  off.  At  one  small  village  there  was  a  little 
church  near  the  street,  with  a  belfry  terminated  by  an  iron 
cross.  It  was  a  strange  sight  to  see  a  huge  nest  on  the  top  of 
this  cross,  and  on  the  nest  a  mother  stork,  while  father  stork 
stood  on  the  edge  of  the  nest  contemplating  her  with  calm 
satisfaction. 

The  car  came  to  a  small  stream,  and  two  curlews  flew  up 
with  their  peculiar  melancholy  cry.  A  crowd  of  small  birds 
also  flew  up  like  swirling  leaves,  after  them.  The  sky  was 
now  becoming  covered  with  lead-colored  clouds,  and  a  cold 
wind  began  to  blow.  The  hills  at  the  left  turned  black  under 
the  shadows.     The  Arabs  and  Kabyles  trudging  along  the 

[202] 


ON  THE  ROAD 

road  bound  their  burnouses  tighter  around  them.  Our  party 
now  came  in  view  of  the  Rummel,  the  river  which  rolls  under 
the  rocks  on  which  Constantine  lies.  Late  in  the  afternoon 
they  entered  the  bright,  fascinating,  and  celebrated  fortress 
city,  and  rolled  directly  through  into  the  Place  Nemours  into 
which  opens  the  animated  Rue  National,  filled  with  a  surging, 
motley  crowd, —  Moors,  Arabs,  Kabyles,  Jews  male  and  female, 
and  all  that  fascinating  native  throng  found  in  Algerian  cities, 
mixed  with  the  unpicturesque  colonists,  the  Europeans,  and 
the  tourists.  This  Place  is  the  centre  of  Constantine  life. 
On  the  Rue  National  are  most  of  the  hotels ;  and  the  car  drew 
up  before  one  which  the  Commander  had  selected  as  the  least 
undesirable.  The  room  into  which  they  were  ushered  had 
some  pretensions  to  comfort  and  even  luxury,  and  looked 
out  upon  the  Place  de  la  Br^che,  or  Nemours.  The  Other- 
one  went  at  once  to  hang  over  the  small  balcony  in- 
closing the  windows  and  to  look  at  the  tumultuous  life  that 
was  flowing  through  the  square.  The  rays  of  the  lowering 
sun  lighted  it  up  with  a  warm  color.  The  most  conspicuous 
element  there  were  the  innumerable  red-capped  gamins  who  in- 
fested the  place  with  blacking-boxes  strung  to  their  shoulders, 
and  who  ran  shrieking  after  each  person  that  was  shod, 
whether  in  shoes  or  slippers,  falling  upon  him  with  the  ra- 
pacity of  hungry  animals.  On  the  corner  opposite  was  a  fas- 
cinating cafe,  where  burnoused  Arabs  sat  drinking  their  tiny 
cups  of  coffee,  and  smoking  or  gazing  dreamily  off  into  va- 
cancy. Many,  presumably  sheiks,  had  rich  robes  decorated 
with  embroidery  in  gold  and  colors,  and  made  delightful 
pictures.  There  wound  through  the  throng,  some  Jews  and 
Jewesses:  the  former  recognizable  by  their  hook  noses,  their 
blue  stockings,  and  blue  turbans ;  the  latter,  generally  moun- 
tains of  flesh,  wearing  queer  little  conical  caps  of  black  satin 
or  velvet,  perched  on  one  side  of  their  raven  locks.  Some  of 
the  young  Jewesses  were  beautiful  and  slender,  with  creamy 
skins  and  dark  velvety  eyes. 

Our  travellers  were  regaled  that  evening  with  a  more  deli- 
cious dinner  than  they  had  expected,  in  a  too  brilliantly 

[203] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

lighted  dining-room,  and  they  sat  contentedly  discussing  it 
while  they  listened  to  the  talk  of  two  men  at  the  table  near 
them.  The  elder  was  telling  the  much  younger  man  with  him, 
something  about  the  famous  city  in  which  they  were. 

*'  It  is  surely  a  fascinating  town,'*  the  young  man  had 
said,  **  which  I  have  always  wanted  to  see,  though  I  know 
little  about  it.  As  you  have  been  here  so  many  times,  and 
as  you  are  always  delving  into  the  history  of  countries  and 
places,  you  must  know  much  of  interest  about  Constantine. 
Anything  you  can  tell  me  will  be  listened  to  gratefully." 

The  elder  man  had  paused  for  some  time  before  replying, 
holding  his  glass  of  good  red  wine  up  against  the  light,  where 
it  gleamed  as  if  holding  molten  rubies.  Most  of  the  tables 
around  were  full  of  tourists  and  business  men  of  the  town, 
who  were  talking  and  laughing  hilariously,  but  the  voice  of 
the  man  at  the  next  table  came  clear  and  distinct,  though  low, 
through  the  babel  of  voices  around. 

'^  I  am  happy  to  hear  that,  and  Constantine  has  for  me, 
too,  a  greater  charm  than  any  other  Oriental  city  I  have  seen 
in  Algeria,  except,  perhaps,  Cherchel ;  and  that  has  not  such 
a  wonderful  and  fascinating  site  as  has  this  city.  It  is  the 
traditions  of  a  life  that  once  flowed  on  in  these  antique  towns 
that  give  such  a  vivid  interest  to  them.  No  matter  how  mod- 
ern their  buildings  and  the  manner  of  life,  the  flavor  of  the 
past  tinctures  them.  Juba  II  and  his  lovely  wife  still  live  in 
Cherchel,  for  me ;  and  the  shades  of  Massenissa  and  of  Sopho- 
nisba  still  hover  around  this  rock-girded  city.  Constantine  is 
the  ancient  Cirta,  built  on  this  isolated  rock,  which  rises  per- 
pendicularly nearly  a  thousand  feet  from  the  bed  of  the  River 
Hummel,  which  bounds  it  on  the  north  and  east.  It  is  con- 
nected with  the  mainland  on  the  west  side,  only  by  an  isth- 
mus, as  you  perhaps  know.  The  deep  ravine  through  which 
the  Rummel  flows  is  spanned  on  the  northeast  by  four  natural 
arches  of  rock,  one  of  which  serves  as  a  foundation  for  the 
bridge  of  El  Kantara.  To  the  northwest  the  precipices  are 
the  highest.  To  the  northeast  and  southeast,  the  heights  of 
Mansoura  and  Sidi  Mecid  command  the  city.     The  Hummel 

[204] 


■c     '     •        • 


>  •     o       »    •      c    >« 


ON   THE   ROAD 

flows  below  this  great  rocky  mass,  cutting  its  bed  deeper  and 
deeper  every  year.  Nature  seems  to  have  shaped  the  rock 
with  a  view  to  defence  and  picturesque  effect.  It  seems  now 
an  impregnable  fortress,  and  I  doubt  whether  even  now,  with 
the  modern  methods  of  warfare,  it  could  be  easily  taken.  It  is 
true  it  has  been  besieged  and  conquered  eighty  times,  but  its 
garrison  has  always  been  starved  out ;  it  has  not  been  battered 
down  or  blown  up.  As  to  the  early  history  of  Constantine, 
you  may  not  recall  your  college  work  in  ancient  history.  I 
will  refresh  your  memory  a  little  and  this  city  will  seem  more 
interesting  still  by  its  light.  Ancient  Numidia  in  the  height 
of  the  Carthaginian  power  was  divided  into  two  provinces. 
There  were  two  great  Berber  tribes,  the  Massaesyli,  to  the 
east,  whose  boundaries  were  the  frontier  of  Carthage  to  the 
Ampsaga  River,  dividing  the  provinces.  The  tribe  to  the  west, 
the  Massylians,  were  ruled  over  by  the  remarkable  Berber 
king,  Massenissa.  His  rival  was  Syphax,  who  married  the 
beautiful  Sophonisba  —  with  whom  Massenissa  was  in  love  — 
the  daughter  of  the  Carthaginian  Hasdrubal.  Naturally 
Syphax  espoused  the  cause  of  the  Carthaginians,  while  Mas- 
senissa, hating  him,  allied  himself  to  the  Romans.  He  was  a 
true  Berber,  a  most  interesting  character,  a  most  intrepid 
horseman,  enduring  long  rides  in  the  desert  without  food  or 
drink.  He  would  never  confess  himself  conquered.  Syphax 
was  in  every  way  better  prepared,  and  was  almost  always  vic- 
torious in  any  encounter,  but  Massenissa  always  returned  to 
the  charge,  though  defeated.  By  his  persistence  he  at  last 
conquered  Syphax,  entered  this  city  —  the  ancient  Cirta  — 
and  took  possession  of  everything,  including  Sophonisba,  with 
whom,  when  she  came  at  his  entrance  in  the  gates  to  throw 
herself  at  his  feet,  weeping,  begging  him  not  to  let  her  fall 
into  the  hands  of  the  Romans,  and  beautiful  in  her  grief,  he 
was  more  than  ever  in  love.  The  Romans  demanded  her  of 
him.  He,  not  daring  to  refuse,  sent  her  a  dose  of  poison,  which 
she  swallowed,  saying  that  her  death  would  have  been  more 
honorable  had  she  not  married  Massenissa  on  the  day  of  her 
funeral.    He  was  rewarded  for  his  obedience,  made  king,  and 

[205] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

allowed  to  wear  a  toga  embroidered  in  palms.  For  fifty  years 
he  remained  a  vigorous  man  and  harassed  the  Carthaginians. 
The  name  of  Cirta  was  changed  to  Constantine  in  the 
fourth  century,  out  of  compliment  to  the  Roman  Emperor 
of  that  name.  Having  been  destroyed  in  an  insurrection,  it 
was  rebuilt  chiefly  through  the  exertions  of  Constantine. 
Later,  it  fell  into  the  hands  of  the  various  Arabian  dynasties, 
and  became  a  centre  of  religious  and  literary  life. 

**  The  Turks  lost  and  conquered  it  several  times.  Only  one 
of  the  beys  did  anything  to  preserve  his  name,  Salah  Bey, 
who  reigned  wisely  for  twenty  years.  You  will  see  his  mosque 
(for  he  built  most  of  the  Mohammedan  buildings  here)  on  the 
Place  Negrier.     It  is  the  finest  in  the  city. 

'*  Now,  under  the  wise  administration  of  the  French,  Con- 
stantine has  entered  into  a  career  of  prosperity  and  peace. 
Its  site  is  conducive  to  this.  A  vast  grain-growing  country 
surrounds  it,  so  that  hundreds  of  Kabyles  come  up  with  their 
flocks,  each  summer,  to  help  in  the  harvest.  To  get  the  finest 
view  of  this  enticing  city,  cross  the  bridge  and  go  up  on  the 
plateau  of  Mansoura.  There  you  will  have  an  unsurpassed 
view,  and  you  will  want  to  sit  there  and  dream  about  Massen- 
issa  and  Sophonisba." 

The  Commander  and  the  Lady  followed  eagerly  the  words 
of  the  strangers,  and  when  they  left  the  Two  rose  also  to  go, 
considering  that  they  had  been  most  fortunate  to  learn  all 
this  about  the  curious  city  in  which  they  were,  and  the  mor- 
row's sight-seeing  would  have  a  more  vivid  interest  for  them. 

At  a  reasonably  early  hour  the  next  morning,  the  Com- 
mander and  the  Lady  issued  forth  from  the  hotel,  under  the 
delighted  charge  of  a  bright-looking  guide  whom  the  hotel 
had  recommended  as  being  under  its  direction  and  therefore 
*'  most  reliable."  The  youth  proudly  announced  himself  to  be 
a  **  real  Kabyle,''  and  his  dark  skin  and  flashing  black  eyes 
testified  to  this.  He  was  also  progressive,  for  he  had  dis- 
carded the  burnous  and  was  arrayed  in  a  European  costume 
and  a  frayed  tie  and  collar,  put  on  with  the  unskilled  hand 
of  one  unused  to  such  a  custom,  but  evidently  he  was  most 

[206] 


ON   THE   ROAD 

proud  of  his  costume.  It  was  a  brilliant  sunny  morning  and 
rather  warm,  although  Constantine  can  be  chilly  enough  some- 
times. The  streets,  as  the  night  before,  were  full  of  a  crowd 
of  tourists  and  natives,  with  many  kaids  of  surrounding  vil- 
lages in  their  most  picturesque  costumes,  and  fat  Jewesses 
wandering  heavily  along,  their  funny  little  conical  caps 
coquettishly  poised  on  one  side  of  their  heads. 

The  guide  took  his  patrons  down  the  Rue  National  to  the 
Place  Negrier,  which  is  planted  around  with  great  trees. 
Here  on  one  side  is  the  ancient  mosque  of  Salah  Bey,  which 
our  party  entered  by  a  large,  arched  door,  and  went  up  some 
black  and  white  marble  steps  to  a  court  all  paved  with  marble 
and  having  a  gallery  running  around  it.  Across  this  came  a 
venerable  man  in  a  huge  turban  and  led  them  to  the  interior. 
An  exclamation  escaped  all  to  find  it  so  beautiful.  Most  of 
the  mosques  they  had  hitherto  entered  had  been  painfully 
plain  and  ugly.  Columns  of  white  marble  divide  this  mosque 
into  naves.  Overhead  there  is  a  timbered  ceiling  of  alternate 
red  and  green  planks,  painted  in  devices.  This  might  be  con- 
sidered by  some  rather  ugly ;  but  the  mimhar,  or  pulpit,  is  ex- 
quisitely ornamented  in  Italian  work  with  colored  marbles 
and  agates,  and  over  this  the  guide  waxed  very  eloquent.  The 
devout  Moslems  kneeling  around,  going  through  their  devo- 
tions, paid  little  attention  to  the  travellers. 

The  guide  now  hurried  them  off  to  see  the  *  *  wonderful 
palace  of  the  Bey  el  Hadj  Ahmed,  the  most  beautiful  ever 
built."  From  the  Place  N6grier  they  went  down  the  Rue 
Caraman  to  the  Place  du  Palais.  Here  they  found  the  palace, 
a  huge  pile  of  masonry,  far  from  elegant,  and  pierced  with 
modern  doors  and  windows.  At  the  entrance  door  the  guard- 
ian, an  intelligent-looking  Arab  in  zouave  costume,  took 
charge  of  them,  but  haughtily  forbade  the  guide  to  enter. 

The  Commander  and  the  Lady  were  astonished  to  find,  with 
such  an  unpromising  exterior,  so  much  beauty  within. 

**  I  have  read,**  said  the  Other-one,  *'  that  El  Hadj  Ahmed, 
the  last  bey  and  the  one  who  built  this,  was  a  dreadful  old 
wretch.    He  demolished  all  the  houses  that  stood  in  the  way 

[207] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

of  building  this  palace,  without  the  least  scruple,  and  de- 
spoiled all  the  principal  mansions  of  Constantine  of  their 
choicest  works  j  old,  encaustic  tiles,  marble  columns,  and 
carved  woodwork;  so  that  this  place,  which,  under  ordinary 
circumstances,  would  have  been  the  work  of  generations,  rose 
as  if  by  enchantment,  in  the  short  space  of  six  years." 

There  are  three  buildings  of  two  stories,  containing  many 
small  rooms  opening  into  beautiful  courts,  surrounded  by 
galleries  whose  horseshoe  arches  are  supported  by  exquisite 
marble  columns.  In  the  court  are  orange-trees  and  palms  and 
beds  of  flowers  around  the  central  fountain.  From  the  gal- 
leries one  looks  down  upon  a  lovely  mosaic  of  color.  Here  are 
porphyry  and  fine  old  tiles  and  sculptured  balustrades.  The 
marble  pillars  throughout  are  of  different  styles,  showing  the 
different  sources  from  which  they  came.  Some  are  slender 
and  elegant,  others  heavy  and  massive,  with  every  variety  of 
form, —  round,  square,  octagonal,  and  twisted.  Between  the 
Bey's  pavilions  are  two  lovely  gardens,  that  entranced  the 
Other-one  so  much  that  she  fain  would  have  lingered;  but 
the  guardian  hurried  them  from  place  to  place  and  would 
give  no  time  to  see  anything  more  slowly.  The  effect  of  the 
perspective  of  light  and  color  was  wonderful.  In  one  court 
he  stopped  to  point  out,  on  a  side  wall,  a  curious  and  very  ugly 
fresco.  It  looked  like  the  work  of  a  child  who  had  stolen  an 
artist's  palette  and  daubed  at  his  own  sweet  will.  There  are 
grotesque  views  of  cities,  forts,  and  ships. 

' '  How  comical !  What  does  it  represent  ?  ' '  asked  the 
Other-one. 

*'  Sieges  of  the  holy  cities,  Madame." 

**  The  Bey  El  Hadj  Ahmed  had  a  Christian  slave,  a  French- 
man, and  as  the  bey  wished  some  fine  paintings  in  his  harem, 
he  ordered  his  slave  to  paint  them  on  the  walls  for  him.  The 
man  said  he  knew  not  how  to  paint,  but  the  bey  declared  all 
Frenchmen  were  artists,  so  the  slave  was  forced  to  obey.  He 
painted  this  and  was  terribly  frightened  for  fear  his  master 
would  not  like  it,  but  the  bey  thought  it  very  fine,  and  the 
Frenchman  was  most  happy." 

[  208  ] 


ON   THE   ROAD 

**  The  bey  certainly  was  a  frightful  person,''  said  the 
Other-one,  as  they  were  going  out.  ''If  any  one  of  his  sub- 
jects offended  him  he  would  nail  his  hands  and  feet  to  a  tree 
and  leave  him  to  die.  He  would  have  the  mouths  sewed  up 
and  the  hands  cut  off,  of  those  who  spoke  their  opinion  of 
him;  and  he  threw  his  wives,  when  he  was  tired  of  them, 
down  the  sheer  rock  on  one  side  of  this  city,  to  be  dashed  to 
pieces." 

**  He  was  a  terrible  old  brute,  certainly!  "  returned  the 
Commander,  as  he  placed  a  fee  in  the  guardian 's  hand ;  '  *  but 
he  knew  how  to  build  a  wonderful  palace." 

*  *  What  is  done  with  this  palace  now  ? ' '  asked  the  Other- 
one. 

**  It  now  serves,  Madame,  for  different  military  purposes 
and  offices." 

When  the  door  closed  on  them,  the  Motorists  felt  as  if  they 
had  been  in  the  times  of  the  Arabian  Nights. 

*  *  Would  my  people  like  to  go  up  to  the  kasba  1  There  is  a 
wonderful  view  and  there  are  the  barracks  for  three  thou- 
sand soldiers  and  a  fme  big  military  hospital.  Also  there  can 
be  seen  great  Roman  cisterns  and  a  place  where  the  Romans 
stored  their  coin.  It  is  not  so  far  nor  so  very  steep,"  asked 
the  guide  anxiously. 

'*  No,  I  think  not,"  answered  the  Commander;  *'  this  after- 
noon we  must  go  down  to  the  Rummel.  I  know,"  he  said  to 
the  Other-one,  **that  this  kasba  has  always  been  the  strong- 
hold of  the  possessors  of  Constantino  and  that  it  is  on  the 
highest  point  of  the  town,  so  of  course  interesting.  But  even 
if  we  can  get  up  there  with  a  car,  we  can't  do  that  and  the 
trip  down  under  the  rocks  to-day." 

**  Will  Monsieur  go  to  the  museum?  "  asked  the  guide. 

**  Certainly,"  answered  the  Other-one.  ''Monsieur  never 
misses  going  to  a  museum." 

They  found  the  small  museum  on  the  Esplanade  Valee, 
with  its  English-looking  garden  and  statue  of  the  Marshal 
Valee ;  it  contained  among  other  antiques  of  the  Roman  times, 
a  beautiful  bronze  statue  of  a  winged  Victory. 

[209] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

Then  the  Motorists,  a  little  weary,  betook  themselves  to 
the  car  with  their  jubilant  Kabyle,  rode  through  the  fasci- 
nating town,  and  went  across  the  bridge  and  around  to  one 
side,  where  they  saw  the  city  perched  on  its  precipitous, 
scarred  rocks,  a  wonderful  sight. 

**  Down  that  rock,**  said  the  guide,  **  the  Bey  El  Hadj 
Ahmed  used  to  throw  his  wives  when  he  was  displeased  with 
them.  Once,  one  caught  on  the  bushes,  half  way  down,  and 
when,  with  great  difficulty,  they  had  taken  her  off,  and  she 
hoped  to  live,  the  bey  ordered  her  to  be  thrown  down  again.  * ' 

That  afternoon  found  our  enthusiastic  pair  on  the  Chemin 
des  Tourists,  a  narrow  road  cut  in  the  face  of  the  rock,  lead- 
ing down  into  the  ravine.  Afterwards  on  thinking  it  over, 
the  Other-one  felt  as  though  she  had  been  the  victim  of  a 
sort  of  nightmare.  They  went  down  staircases,  in  some 
places,  and  across  slender  bridges  that  seemed  to  be  hung  by 
a  frail  support  to  the  rock;  if  these  should  give  way,  which 
seemed  more  than  probable,  one  would  fall  down,  down  to  the 
Rummel  boiling  far  below.  Great  rocks  hung  over  the  path 
which  was  cut  into  their  side,  seeming  about  to  fall  and  crush 
one.  The  gloom  grew  deeper  as  they  went  down.  At  one 
point  they  could  see,  far  above,  the  white  and  blue  houses  of 
the  native  quarter,  which  seemed  about  to  tumble  down  from 
their  heights.  There  were  two  great  arches  of  rock,  the  re- 
mains of  ancient  bridges,  and  a  bas-relief  of  some  elephants 
and  of  a  woman  on  one  of  the  arches.  Wild  pigeons,  some 
storks,  even  an  eagle  flew  out  from  the  crevices  in  the  rocks, 
adding  to  the  uncanny  effect  of  the  place.  At  one  point  odors 
came  up  which  certainly  were  not  from  **Araby  the  Blest." 

*'  Often  they  throw  the  refuse  down  here,"  said  the  guide, 
**  and  sometimes  in  summer  it  is  not  well  to  come." 

When,  after  much  exertion,  they  reached  the  bed  of  the 
river,  the  Other-one  felt  that  they  were  never  to  get  out  of 
this  chasm.  The  great  rocks  seemed  about  to  come  together 
and  smother  them,  and  she  fancied  the  discordant  shrieks  of 
the  birds  were  from  the  spirits  of  the  murdered  wives  of  the 
bey.     Indeed,  she  also  fancied  she  could  see  his  wicked  face 

[210] 


ON  THE   ROAD 

grinning  upon  them  from  one  of  the  jutting  rocks.  When  at 
length,  after  even  greater  exertion,  the  party  had  climbed  up 
and  out,  the  Lady  experienced  a  feeling  of  profound  relief, 
and  thought  air  had  never  seemed  sweeter  or  sky  more  blue. 

**  It  was  certainly  a  good  bit  of  engineering  to  build  that 
path,**  said  the  Commander,  as  they  paused  to  rest  on  a 
green  slope;  and  he  wiped  his  brow  and  breathed  heavily 
after  the  upward  climb. 

Their  Kabyle  would  fain  have  taken  them  to  see  the  Great 
Mosque,  to  the  synagogue  of  the  Jews,  to  the  cathedral. 

*  *  No !  *  *  said  the  Commander.  *  *  This  is  enough  for  to- 
day." So  the  guide  contented  himself  with  the  fat  fee  given 
him. 

**  A  good  sensible  man,  intelligent  enough  not  to  pretend  to 
know  too  much.  These  Kabyles  seem  to  be  able  to  learn  any- 
thing but  cleanliness!  **  said  the  Commander,  as  the  man  re- 
luctantly left  them  and  went  down  the  street. 


[211] 


CHAPTER  XIV 

TO  TEBESSA  BY  AIN  BEIDA 

ON  the  road  the  next  morning,  going  south,  our  Motorists 
looked  back  and  saw  Constantine  afar  on  its  isolated 
rock,  a  veritable  queen  for  situation  and  interest.  The  way 
lay  along  a  barren,  high  plateau.  They  crossed  the  Oued 
Ben-Merzog  and  soon  thereafter  the  Oued  Kleb,  threads  of 
streams  in  their  pebbly  beds;  then  they  passed  Sila,  thirty- 
five  kilometres  from  Constantine.  This  town  is  the  depart- 
ing place  for  those  learned^ and  enthusiastic  archaeologists 
who  seek  on  the  rocky  plateau,  at  the  southwest,  the  most 
ancient  megalithic  monuments  resembling  the  dolmens  of 
Europe. 

At  Ain  Beida,  one  hundred  twenty-one  kilometres,  they 
lunched,  meagrely,  at  the  primitive  hotel,  on  tough  mutton 
and  some  wisps  of  green  salad.  As  usual,  they  found  the  red 
wine  very  good.  Beyond  this  town,  they  entered  wide  and 
sandy  plains  where  the  camel's  thorn  bushes  and  scrub  grass 
were  the  only  vegetation  in  sight,  besides  the  esparto  grass. 
What  gave  the  greatest  interest  to  the  scene  were  the  nomad 
tents,  in  groups  or  singly,  on  the  plains  far  from  the  road. 
They  were  of  a  kind  of  which  our  travellers  had  seen  but  few 
before.  They  were  of  red  and  white,  and  red  and  black, 
striped  camel's-hair,  and  they  gave  most  picturesque  spots  of 
color  on  the  gray  and  green  plains. 

'*  Let  us  get  out  and  visit  some  of  these  nomads, ''said  the 
Other-one.  So  the  tourists  alighted  and  walked  a  distance  over 
the  sand  and  bunch  grass,  and  came  to  a  little  settlement  of 
tents  stretched  low  on  the  ground  and  surrounded  by  a  hedge 
of  the  dried  camel 's-thorn.  Some  scrawny  sheep  and  goats 
were  feeding  on  the  scrub  near  by.  The  nomads  came  out  from 
under  their  tents  and  advanced  to  meet  the  strangers.    Some 

[212] 


TO   TEBESSA 

men  and  boys  were  wrapped  in  rags  of  burnouses  and  the 
two  or  three  women  had  blue  cloth  draperies  caught  on  the 
shoulder  with  the  ever  present  silver  fibula.  One  young  and 
rather  good-looking  woman  had  her  head  bound  with  a  scarlet 
kerchief  and  held  a  bronze  infant  who  was  almost  nude, 
against  her  firm  breast.  The  Commander  advanced  and  be- 
gan to  look  critically  at  the  necklace  and  bracelets  the  woman 
wore,  of  very  simple  design,  when  a  most  hideous  and 
wrinkled  old  crone  rushed  out  from  one  of  the  tents  and  gave 
vent  to  a  succession  of  howls  that  would  have  put  Strauss  on 
his  mettle  if  he  had  tried  to  render  the  sounds  in  one  of  his 
descriptive  symphonies.  The  men  then  came  up  and  began 
to  look  fiercely  at  the  lone  lorn  travellers. 

**  What  is  the  matter  with  the  old  lady!  *'  exclaimed  the 
Commander.  **  I  am  not  going  to  take  any  jewellery  by 
force.  Besides,  this  isn't  worth  taking.  Come!  Let  us 
leave  these  inhospitable  nomads.'*  Saying  which,  he  put  a 
piece  of  silver  in  the  woman's  hand,  and  he  and  the  Lady 
moved  rapidly  off,  followed  by  some  of  the  men  and  boys. 

The  Other-one  climbed  breathlessly  into  the  car,  while  the 
men  watched  them  fiercely. 

**  "We  came  near  having  an  adventure!"  she  exclaimed, 
' '  the  nearest  yet !  But  I  don 't  believe  anything  out  of  the 
ordinary  is  going  to  happen  to  us."  She  added  with  a  sigh, 
* '  My  letters  home  have  to  be  so  tame. ' ' 

After  eighty-eight  kilometres,  the  party  reached  the  an- 
cient Theveste,  or  Tebessa,  and  rolled  into  the  strange  little 
town  by  the  Constantine  Gate.  Adrian  stopped  the  car  in 
front  of  an  uninviting-looking  hotel  with  the  euphonious 
name  of  Athanasio.  The  Other-one  felt  at  once,  when  they 
were  shown  up  to  the  forlorn  little  room  by  the  Greek 
landlord,  that  she  must  brace  herself  for  discomfort  and  dirt, 
and  show  a  brave  front  to  the  Commander.  They  set  forth 
immediately  with  a  meagre  and  hungry-looking  Greek,  to 
show  the  town.  It  was  a  very  important  place  even  in  the 
third  century  B.  C.  The  Third  Augustan  Legion  had  its 
permanent  settlement  here.     It  stood  at  the  junction  of  nine 

[213] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

roads,  and  was  the  Roman  rampart  against  the  Berbers.  It  be- 
came a  Roman  colony  under  Trajan,  and  was  the  richest  city 
in  Africa  next  to  Carthage,  to  which  it  was  united  by  a  road 
by  the  Numidians,  and  was  rebuilt  in  535  by  the  exertions  of 
Solomon,  who  was  a  general  of  Justinian,  and  the  city  con- 
tinued to  exist  under  the  shelter  of  its  Byzantine  walls.  The 
French  took  possession  of  it  in  1851. 

They  now  approached  the  city  walls,  and  the  Greek  pointed 
out  the  fine  arch  through  which  the  street  entered.  **  It  was 
the  triumphal  arch  of  Caracalla,'*  he  said.  They  walked 
through  it  and  were  amazed  to  see  its  beauty  and  its  good 
preservation.  **  This  triumphal  arch  dates  from  the  time  of 
Septimus  Severus,"  announced  the  guide  in  a  monotonous 
voice.  *  *  It  is  what  is  called  in  architecture,  quadrif  rons,  hav- 
ing four  faces  of  equal  dimensions,  each  face  an  arch.  It  is 
built  entirely  of  stone.  The  central  ceiling,  as  you  see,  is 
elaborately  decorated. '  * 

He  asked  them  to  note  particularly  two  medallions  which 
ornamented  the  key  of  the  arch  to  the  west,  on  one  of  which 
they  could  just  make  out  a  divinity,  *'  probably,''  the  guide 
said,  '  *  the  protector  of  Theveste. ' '  On  the  other,  he  said,  the 
figure  was  Minerva.  On  three  sides,  he  pointed  out  the  dedi- 
cation to  Septimus  Severus,  to  Caracalla,  and  to  Julia  Donna, 
his  mother.  *  *  With  the  exception  of  the  one  at  Rome  and 
the  great  arch  at  Tripoli,  this  is  the  only  four-sided  arch 
known,"  said  the  Greek.  '*  This  is  the  gate  to  Solomon's 
Citadel,  as  it  is  called." 

They  looked  down  to  the  east  and  saw  those  great  Byzan- 
tine walls,  restored  by  Solomon,  and  were  filled  with  wonder 
at  their  size,  preservation,  and  extent. 

They  followed  the  guide  to  the  beautiful  Temple  of  Min- 
erva, with  its  six  Corinthian  columns  in  front.  The  sides 
have  four  pilasters,  and  above  them  are  panels  with  sculptured 
heads  of  oxen  ornamented  with  wreaths,  also  eagles  holding 
in  their  claws  two  serpents.  It  is  now  used  as  a  museum  for 
the  fragments  of  antiquities  found  here,  which  are  not  of 
great  beauty  or  importance. 

[214] 


A  BEDOUIN  TENT 


i:i  INS  OF  THE  GREAT  BASILICA  AT  TEBESSA 


o 


TO  TEBESSA 

"  Now,'*  said  the  guide,  *'  we  must  see  the  best  of  all,  the 
great  basilica ;  it  is  a  third  of  a  mile  outside  the  gates.  *  * 

On  the  way,  the  Greek  informed  them  that  this  basilica 
and  the  ruins  of  the  monastery  are  called  the  most  interest- 
ing Christian  monuments  of  North  Africa.  They  date  from 
the  fourth  century  but  were  modified  later.  They  have  been 
cleaned  of  debris  and  now  one  can  get  a  good  idea  of  their 
ancient  grandeur. 

They  descended  from  the  car  at  a  short  distance  from  a 
monumental  gate  under  which  they  went  into  a  long  paved 
avenue.  If  the  travellers  were  astonished  at  the  extent  of  the 
walls,  they  marvelled  more  at  the  mass  of  ruins  which  spread 
out  in  all  directions  and  which  testified  to  the  ancient  grand- 
eur and  beauty  of  the  basilica  and  its  monastery. 

**  Once  there  was  a  wall  all  around  this,'*  said  the  guide, 
*'  and  there  were  a  cathedral,  the  Bishop  's  residence,  cells  for 
the  clergy,  a  forum,  and  very  large  stables.  Between  these 
and  the  basilica  there  was  a  covered  way  for  the  clergy  to 
use  in  bad  weather.  I  have  been  with  the  service  of  the 
Beaux  Arts,  and  I  learned  much  about  all,  when  they  exca- 
vated and  cleaned  this." 

*  *  We  are  indeed  fortunate  to  have  secured  so  learned  a 
guide."  said  the  Commander.  When  told  this,  the  Greek 
bowed  low  and  his  melancholy  countenance  assumed  some- 
thing of  a  look  of  gratification,  and  he  hastened  to  give  them 
more  from  his  store  of  knowledge. 

**  The  gentleman  and  lady  do  not  know,  possibly,  that  an 
ancient  basilica  was  a  court  of  justice,  and  as  the  Christians 
found  it  suited  to  their  manner  of  worship,  they  adopted  the 
style  for  their  early  churches." 

There  is  a  flight  of  steps  going  into  the  basilica,  up  which 
the  party  went,  into  a  large  court,  which  is  surrounded  by 
arcades,  each  side  supported  by  four  columns  with  pedestals 
between  them,  probably  for  statues.  The  centre  is  open  to 
the  sky,  and  there  is  a  great  elevated  central  basin  or  foun- 
tain. At  the  right  a  passage  conducts  to  the  baptistery,  with 
a  circular  basin.     Beyond  the  court  they  entered  into  what 

[2151 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

the  guide  said  was  probably  the  main  building,  with  a  nave, 
with  apsidal  end,  and  two  aisles  which  had  a  gallery,  the 
whole  being  areaded.  The  walls  had  been  built  of  a  fine 
white  limestone.  The  columns  are  of  gray  granite,  white  mar- 
ble, and  blue  cipolin.  Many  of  them  are  broken,  but  the 
bases  are  still  in  the  same  place.  The  Commander  paced  off 
the  extent  of  the  basilica  and  found  it  was  one  hundred  and 
forty-two  feet  in  length  and  sixty-eight  feet  in  width. 

The  Greek  said  there  had  been  three  periods  of  work  in  the 
basilica,  that  of  the  Pagan  Emperors,  which  was  the  most  per- 
fect, with  Corinthian  capitals  and  polished  marble  columns; 
that  of  the  Christian  period,  exemplified  in  the  fluted  col- 
umns; lastly,  a  time  of  absolute  decadence,  with  rough  pro- 
ductions in  stone.  The  apse  had  a  beautiful  tessellated 
pavement  of  fine  design,  still  in  good  preservation  from  having 
been  covered  with  a  layer  of  earth  to  protect  it.  The  guide 
said  that  splendid  mosaics  had  been  found,  also  sculptured 
capitals  and  cornices,  tablets  and  mosaics  from  the  walls,  and 
many  tombs  and  inscriptions.  Behind  the  basilica  there  was 
a  row  of  cells  probably  intended  for  the  monks  and  other  re- 
ligious persons.  The  whole,  the  guide  said,  had  been  sur- 
rounded by  a  strong  wall,  flanked  at  intervals  by  towers,  and 
it  was  like  a  vast  fortified  convent. 

The  party  now  descended  the  steps  of  the  basilica  and 
walked  down  to  the  vast  quadrilateral  court  with  terraces 
to  the  south  and  west,  which,  probably,  the  guide  said,  had 
served  for  promenades.  The  south  end  has  the  remains  of  a 
portico  with  columns.  It  is  divided  into  four  square  basins 
separated  by  balustrades.  The  guide  then  took  them  to  the 
south  end  of  the  ruins,  at  the  left  of  the  great  entrance  gate. 
Here  is  a  long  sort  of  canal,  below  which  are  about  eighty 
depressions,  or  troughs.  He  informed  them  that  these  were 
considered  to  have  been  the  stables. 

**  The  whole  must  have  been  on  a  tremendous  scale!'* 
exclaimed  the  Commander.  **  See  the  immense  blocks  of 
stone  which  were  so  carefully  adjusted  without  mortar.  Do 
the  archaeologists  know  much  of  the  history  of  this  basilica  ?  * ' 

[216  1 


TO  TEBESSA 

'*  No/'  replied  the  Greek.  *'  The  gentlemen  here  who  had 
charge  of  the  excavations  said  nothing  could  be  discovered 
concerning  the  history,  and  the  purposes  for  which  the  earlier 
buildings  were  used  must  always  be  a  matter  of  uncertainty.*' 

Returning  to  the  Athanasio  the  travellers  endured  with 
what  patience  they  could,  the  poor  food,  the  hard  beds,  and 
other  not-to-be-mentioned  discomforts  of  the  Greek  hotel. 
They  were  only  too  happy  to  have  seen  the  ruins  of  a  previous, 
wonderful  civilization,  and  to  have  experienced  sensations 
new  to  them. 


[217] 


CHAPTER  XV 

THE  RUINS  OP  TIMGAD 

EAELY  the  next  morning,  the  motorists  departed  under 
a  cold  gray  sky  which  turned  the  distant  mountains  an 
indigo  blue,  and  Tebessa  with  its  gardens  and  groves  of  olive- 
trees,  was  soon  left  behind. 

"  They  tell  me  this  plateau  on  which  Tebessa  is  situated 
is  a  grain  country,*'  said  the  Commander,  *'  and  entirely 
dependent  on  the  abundant  rains  for  its  harvest ;  it  certainly 
looks  as  if  we  were  to  get  some  of  the  rain  to-day." 

The  car  went  across  the  plateau  retracing  the  fairly 
good  road  of  yesterday.  There  seemed,  this  morning,  to  be 
more  tents  of  the  nomads  scattered  over  the  plains  and 
lighting  up  the  sombre  grays  and  dull  green  with  their  gay 
stripes  of  red  and  white.  The  party  stopped  at  Ain  Beida 
for  luncheon  and  then  pushed  on  for  Khenchella,  fifty-four 
kilometres  from  Tebessa.  Here  their  road  lay  over  the  foot- 
hills of  the  Khenchella  Mountains,  black  with  great  cedar 
forests.  At  thirty-seven  miles  from  Batna  the  signboard 
pointed  the  way  to  the  right  for  Timgad  and  they  soon  saw 
in  the  distance  a  vast  array  of  ruins  like  a  second  Pompeii, 
on  an  elevation.  The  Batna  Mountains  arose  in  the  west,  a 
magnificent  panorama,  darkly  blue  under  the  leaden  sky. 
The  car  stopped  presently  at  a  plain  little  house,  a  sort  of  way- 
side inn.  ^ 

To  her  surprise,  the  Lady  found  the  room  shown  her  by  a 
weary  Arab  waiter  to  be  not  only  clean,  but  very  homelike 
and  cheerful.  She  at  once  set  out  with  the  Commander,  and 
as  they  walked  slowly  up  the  road  leading  to  the  ancient 
town,  she  asked  him  to  observe  the  Aures  Mountains  far  in 
the  southeast. 

*'  I  have  read,''  she  said,  "  that  it  is  the  most  important 

[218] 


THE  RUINS   OF  TIMGAD 

range  in  Northern  Africa,  raising  a  valuable  barrier  between 
the  Tell  and  the  invaders  from  the  Sahara.  The  people  of 
the  Aures  are  called  the  Chawia,  and  are  a  branch  of  the  great 
Berber  race  that  has  occupied  Africa  from  Egypt  to  the  At- 
lantic from  prehistoric  times.  They  say  the  women  are  very 
beautiful.** 

They  had  arrived  now  at  the  little  museum  on  the  outskirts 
of  the  ancient  town.  Here  all  sorts  of  sculptured  fragments 
were  fastened  on  the  wall  or  placed  against  it,  with  broken 
columns,  capitals,  and  the  usual  debris  of  an  excavated,  an- 
cient city  scattered  around.  Near  was  a  rather  elegant  foun- 
tain, an  antique,  with  a  marble  cupid  on  the  upright.  Beyond 
the  museum  one  could  see  a  great  forest  of  columns  and  in 
the  distance,  green  hills  rising  to  misty  purple  mountains. 
As  our  people  stopped  to  look  at  some  of  the  mutilated  heads 
and  torsos  on  the  wall,  a  small  dark  man  with  spectacles 
came  out  of  the  museum  and  welcomed  them  smilingly.  He 
introduced  himself  as  the  director  in  charge  of  the  excava- 
tions here,  and  seeing  they  were  strangers,  wished  to  be  of 
service  to  them. 

**  If  you  would  kindly  give  us  some  one  to  show  us  the 
ruins  intelligently,  and  who  has  some  knowledge  of  the  his- 
tory, we  shall  be  most  grateful,**  said  the  Other-one. 

The  polite  Frenchman  regretted  sincerely  that  for  that 
afternoon  he  was  occupied  with  some  work  that  could  not  be 
left,  otherwise  he  would  have  been  most  charmed  to  go  the 
rounds  with  them  himself ;  but  he  added  that  his  sub-director, 
an  intelligent  Italian,  could  go  with  them  and  would  do  all  in 
his  power  to  help  them  to  an  understanding  of  these  wonder- 
ful ruins,  the  most  wonderful  in  the  world,  in  fact,  surpassing 
even  Pompeii. 

This  town  of  ruins,  now  Timgad,  was  once  the  ancient 
Thamugadi,  a  superb  city  in  its  time,  the  centre  of  civiliza- 
tion in  the  heart  of  a  barbarous  country.  Being  prosperous, 
it  had  many  rich  men  who  adorned  it  with  temples,  statues, 
monuments,  forum,  and  baths.  After  the  couple  had 
looked  at  some  of  the  fragments  of  ancient  marbles,  notably 

[219] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

one  or  two  of  Venus  holding  a  shell  before  her  testifying  to 
her  fabled  origin,  and  one  or  two  similar  statues,  unlike  any 
they  could  remember  ever  having  seen  before,  they  turned  to 
walk  up  to  the  ruins,  accompanied  by  a  short,  bronzed  Ital- 
ian, whose  French,  if  fluent,  left  something  to  be  desired  as 
to  pronunciation.  As  our  travellers  came  up  to  the  mass  of 
the  ruins  of  the  ancient  town,  they  were  more  than  ever 
amazed  at  their  extent.  There  were  not  only  forests  of  col- 
umns, but  arches,  paved  streets,  temples,  and  great  capitals, 
as  well,  all  richly  carved,  which  lay  on  the  ground  or  the 
pavement. 

On  the  right  were  ruins  of  baths  and  houses  much  like  those 
of  Pompeii;  farther  on,  an  edifice  which  must  have  been 
luxuriously  fitted  up  and  bearing  an  inscription  which  gave 
the  information  that  this  was  a  library.  Going  on,  up  the 
street  called  by  the  Romans  Cardo  Maximus,  and  which  sep- 
arated the  city  into  two  unequal  parts,  they  came  to  the 
street  cutting  the  Cardo  at  right  angles,  the  Decumanus 
Maximus.  From  here  they  went  up  twelve  steps  into  the 
forum,  which  is  preceded  by  a  monumental  gate,  and  sur- 
rounded by  porticos.  The  guide  told  them  that  in  ancient 
times  there  had  been  many  statues,  both  equestrian  and  stand- 
ing, in  the  open  space,  and  he  pointed  out  the  names  of 
various  emperors,  governors  of  provinces,  and  other  impor- 
tant personages  who  belonged  to  the  ancient  Thamugadi,  on 
the  pedestals  which  remained.  On  some  of  the  tiles  in  the 
pavement  of  the  forum  he  showed  tracing  for  games.  On  one 
he  read  this,  etched  by  an  idle  hand,  a  short  and  much-to-the- 
point  creed  for  the  enjoyment  of  life:  *'To  hunt,  to  bathe,  to 
play,  to  laugh, —  this  is  life." 

The  front  of  the  forum  was  occupied  by  shops.  On  the 
east  was  a  basilica,  where  the  court  of  justice  was  held.  Near 
by  was  a  market,  according  to  inscriptions  on  some  pedestals, 
built  by  the  generosity  of  a  certain  Marcus  Plotius  Faustus 
and  his  wife,  Cornelia  Valentina  Tucciana,  whose  names, 
that  they  might  not  be  forgotten,  had  been  inscribed  where- 
ever  it  was  possible  to  engrave  them.     At  the  end  of  the  mar- 

[220] 


SOMK  CX)LUMNS  AT  TIMGAD 


FLOWER  BOXES  IN  A  ROMAN  HOUSE  AT  TIMGAD 


THE   RUINS   OF  TIMGAD 

ket  the  party  came  to  the  ruins  of  some  small  baths  with  the 
hall  for  repose,  and  basins  for  hot  and  cold  water. 

*'  These  were  private  baths/*  the  Italian  informed  them. 
**  It  was  here  they  found  the  Venus  holding  the  shell  in  front 
of  her,  which  you  saw  at  the  museum.  It  must  have  been 
elaborately  decorated,  judging  from  the  mosaics  discovered 
and  other  statues  of  nymphs.*'  Coming  out  from  the  market 
they  went  up  the  paved  street  of  the  Decumanus.  There  are 
deeply  worn  ruts  in  the  pavement  here.  **  These  show,*' 
said  the  Commander,  **  that  there  must  have  been  much  more 
traffic  on  this  street  than  the  others.** 

The  columns,  the  pillars,  and  their  bases,  cast  long  shadows 
across  the  paved  street  in  the  late  afternoon  sun,  as  they 
had  done  for  centuries,  and  the  chain  of  the  Aures  grew 
mistily  rose  and  mauve,  before  the  party  came  to  the  beau- 
tiful Arch  of  Trajan.  This  is  of  a  warm  yellow  sandstone 
with  fluted  marble  columns.  Through  the  openings  of  the 
three  arches  the  pale  gold  and  rose  of  the  western  sky, 
with  the  soft  green  hills,  could  be  seen.  Both  sides  of  the 
arch  are  similar,  and  the  capitals,  bases,  and  columns  are  of 
white  marble.  It  has  a  majestic  air  with  its  fine  proportions. 
It  seemed  to  our  travellers  the  key  note  of  the  whole  city. 
Passing  under  it  they  turned  to  look  back,  and  saw  that  a 
white  marble  statue  stood  in  one  of  the  niches.  This,  though 
mutilated,  gave  them  a  better  idea  of  v.  hat  the  arch  must 
have  been  in  all  its  glory  with  statues  in  all  its  niches. 

**  This  city,**  said  the  Italian  in  response  to  the  Other-one *s 
questions  as  to  the  history  of  the  town,  **  was  built  in  the 
reign  of  Trajan  in  the  year  100.  It  was  situated  at  the  inter- 
section of  six  Roman  roads.  It  must  have  been  a  superb  city 
considering  the  size,  extent,  and  beauty  of  its  ruined  baths, 
temples,  statues,  forums,  and  monuments.  It  became  Christian 
in  the  sixth  century.  In  the  seventh  century  it  was  sacked 
and  burned  by  the  Berbers.  It  is  very  strange  that  this  city 
was  not  known  in  modern  times  until  recently,  so  fully  did  it 
pass  out  of  memory.    Even  the  French  knew  nothing  about 

[221] 


A   MOTOR   FLIGHT 

it.  In  1888  the  French  Government  began  to  excavate  these 
most  interesting  ruins,  the  finest  in  Africa. ' ' 

*' Is  it  all  completed?"  asked  the  Commander,  who  had 
been  extremely  impressed  by  all  he  had  seen. 

**  No,  almost  two-thirds  of  the  city  are  as  yet  [1910] 
uncovered.    The  excavations  are  going  on  slowly,  however." 

**  Have  any  fine  or  important  statues  been  discovered,  or 
works  of  art?  "  asked  the  Other-one. 

*  *  No,  only  the  very  beautiful  mosaics  in  the  baths.  Some 
we  may  see  farther  on.  This  town  was  more  of  a  business 
town  of  stone  and  marble,  and  the  colonists  of  North  Africa 
did  not  revel  in  fine  statues  and  bronzes,  as  did  the  people  of 
Pompeii.  If  there  had  been  many  of  these,  they  would  have 
been  burned  for  lime  and  also  destroyed  in  the  many  sieges 
and  battles." 

Next  they  went  to  the  temple  of  Jupiter  Capitolinus  on  the 
highest  point  of  the  town.  Two  very  tall  columns  of 
this  have  been  replaced,  but  most  of  the  temple  has  been 
destroyed.  From  these  and  from  the  walls,  in  some  places 
six  feet  thick,  with  stones  three  and  four  feet  in  length,  they 
got  some  idea  of  the  great  extent  of  the  temple,  and  there  is 
a  debris  of  beautiful  marbles  all  around. 

''Now,  as  it  is  getting  late,"  said  the  Italian,  *' I  must 
show  the  signor  and  the  signora  the  most  important  of  what 
remains;  though  there  is  much,  very  much,  more  of  great 
interest.  "We  will  return  by  another  street  to  see  the  theatre. '  * 
Passing  a  house  not  far  from  the  Forum,  that  must  have 
belonged  to  a  wealthy  citizen,  their  guide  asked  them  to  note 
the  atrium,  with  columns,  and  a  central  fountain  with  semi- 
circular flower  boxes  near  it,  of  exquisite  design.  As  they 
came  to  the  theatre,  an  Arab  ran  up  and  said  something  to 
the  Italian,  at  the  same  time  handing  him  a  key.  He  turned 
to  them  and  said: 

*'  The  director  is  anxious  that  you  should  see  the  latest 
discovery  in  the  excavation,  to  which  we  will  go  at  once  after 
looking  at  the  theatre,  which  you  see  is  built  against  the  hill, 
thus  saving  much  work  in  masonry  and  giving  great  solidity. 

[  222  ] 


THE  THEATRE;   RUINS  OF  TIMGAD 


A  STREET  OF  ANCIENT  TIMGAD  AND  A  MODERN  CHARIOT 


ARCH  OF  TRAJAN:  RUINS  OF  TIMGAD 


ENTRANCE  TO  THE  FORUM  AT  TIMGAD 


THE   RUINS   OF  TIMGAD 

Of  the  facade  there  is  only  this  debris  with  columns,  some 
of  which,  you  see,  have  been  set  up,  to  give  one  a  little  idea 
of  what  the  theatre  was;  also,  here  are  some  of  the  stone 
steps  against  the  wall.  About  four  thousand  people  could  be 
seated  here/' 

Walking  by  a  side  path  up  the  hill,  the  guide  showed  them 
the  wonderful  view  over  the  ruins,  and  their  extent.  **  It 
looks,  as  some  one  said  of  Pompeii,  as  if  a  giant  had  taken  a 
great  knife  and  sliced  off  all  the  tops  of  the  houses  and  other 
buildings,  *  *  said  the  Other-one ;  *  *  but  how  the  flush  of  the 
sinking  sun  is  tinging  the  columns  pink,  and  the  beautiful 
arch  too !  The  city  seems  as  though  it  might  once  more  burst 
into  vivid  life.'* 

To  the  south  the  Italian  indicated  some  ruins  which  he 
said  were  those  of  a  famous  Byzantine  fort  built  under  Jus- 
tinian, the  walls  of  which,  in  some  places,  are  in  good  pre- 
servation. "  In  the  insurrection  of  1871  the  people  of  Tebessa 
and  neighboring  villages  defended  themselves  there  from  the 
Arabs  of  Mokasani.  Two  miles  to  the  southwest,  in  that  spur 
of  the  Aures  Mountains,  is  a  magnificent  ravine  called  the 
Gorge  of  the  Seven  Sleepers.  In  the  hills  on  either  side  are 
hundreds  of  circular  tombs,  the  date  of  which  is  unknown. 

*'  The  baptistery  we  are  going  to  see,'*  said  he,  as  they 
walked  outside  the  city,  over  the  heap  of  debris,  where 
some  natives  were  digging  and  carrying  off  dirt  in  baskets, 
*  *  belonged  to  a  vast  early  church  with  three  naves  and  many 
chapels.  The  baptistery  is  a  recent  discovery,  and  has  been 
covered  over  with  a  roof  to  protect  it  from  injury  and  the 
weather." 

The  guide  unlocked  the  door  of  the  small  building  and 
showed  them  a  large,  six-sided  basin  for  baptism,  with  two 
steps  leading  down  to  it.  It  was  growing  late,  and  the  light 
from  some  small  windows  did  not  aid  much,  but  they  were 
able  to  see  something  of  the  fine  mosaics  in  a  geometric  pat- 
tern, in  soft,  beautiful  colors,  well  preserved.  Round  the 
basin  is  a  floor  of  mosaics  in  a  conventional  pattern  of 
leaves. 

[223  1 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

'*  This,  probably,  had  a  roof  supported  by  columns,**  said 
the  guide,  **  and  belonged  to  the  church  whose  scanty  ruins 
you  see  all  around  here. 

*  *  It  grieves  me  that  I  cannot  have  time  to  show  the  signor 
and  the  signora  more  of  the  wonderful  ruins  of  the  city,  but 
now  I  must  say  addio.  There  is  an  important  duty  that  calls 
for  my  attention.  If  you  wish  to  wander  around  by  your- 
selves, you  will  find  many  things  to  please  you.'*  Saying 
which,  he  bowed  and  walked  away,  the  Commander  and  the 
lady  calling  after  him  to  express  their  gratitude. 

**  I  ought  to  have  given  him  something,  I  suppose,'*  said 
the  former. 

'  *  Oh,  no !  He  seems  like  a  scholar,  and  would  feel  insulted 
if  we  offered  him  a  fee.** 

The  Commander  looked  doubtful,  and  they  retraced  their 
steps  back  to  the  high  part  of  the  ruined  town  and  climbed 
to  the  highest  part  of  the  theatre. 

**  Come,  let  us  sit  down  here  on  one  of  these  seats  and  try 
to  imagine  the  city,  once  again  pulsating  with  the  ancient 
tumultuous  life,**  said  the  Other-one.  ''  How  silent  it  all 
is,  and  has  been  for  centuries,  with  the  wind  blowing  through 
its  ruined  streets,  and  the  sun,  day  after  day,  gilding  the 
broken  columns  and  the  great  arch!  What  a  sensation  of 
melancholy  it  gives  one  to  think  that  once  these  streets  were 
full  of  human  life  and  resounding  with  human  voices !  ' ' 

The  sun  dropped  lower  and  lower,  then  disappeared,  ting- 
ing the  west  with  crimson.  The  distant  mountains  of  Batna 
swam,  too,  in  a  crimson  mist.  The  city  also  was  flushed  with 
the  divine  color  on  its  hundreds  of  columns  and  on  its  great 
dominating  arch.  Then  the  color  went  out,  and  the  night 
began  to  settle  over  all.  The  pair  went  slowly  down  to  the 
little  hotel,  with  a  sensation  of  having  visited  a  city  of  the 
dead.  The  last  they  saw  was  the  great  peak  of  the  Chelia, 
the  highest  point  of  the  Aures,  black  against  the  dark  blue 
sky. 


224 


CHAPTER  XVI 

TIMGAD  TO  BATNA  BY  LAMBESSA  —  BATNA  TO  BISE^RA 

THE  Other-one  was  awakened  the  next  morning  from  a 
deep  slumber,  by  loud  outcries,  the  babble  of  many- 
tongues,  the  lowing  of  oxen,  the  bleating  of  sheep,  intermin- 
gled with  the  discordant  braying  of  donkeys.  She  rushed  at 
once  to  the  little  window,  half  expecting  to  find  the  ancient 
city  awakened  from  its  long  sleep,  its  ruins  restored,  and  the 
streets  thrilling  with  life.  A  strange  sight  met  her  eyes: 
across  the  way,  where  all  had  been  barren  and  desolate  the 
night  before,  a  city  of  white  tents  had  sprung  up  with  mush- 
room quickness.  A  fence  of  wooden  palings  separated  it 
from  the  road.  Inside  and  out  were  Arabs,  Kabyles,  goats, 
sheep,  cows,  and  oxen.  At  the  gate  two  or  three  natives, 
swathed  to  the  head  in  burnouses,  were  shouting,  howling, 
gesticulating,  and  admitting  to  the  enclosure  other  howling 
and  shouting  Arabs, —  drivers  of  various  flocks  of  sheep  and 
goats.  Herds  of  cattle,  also,  were  mixing  in,  prodded  by 
frantic  natives,  who  were  pushing,  struggling,  and  jostling, 
while  a  cloud  of  dust  hung  over  all. 

*  *  Come  quickly !  * '  the  Other-one  called  to  the  sleepy  Com- 
mander. **  Here  is  a  native  fair,  the  like  of  which  you  have 
never  seen!  *'  The  morning  sun  was  lighting  all.  The  only 
serene  things  to  be  seen  were  the  far,  soft  blue  hills  and  moun- 
tains, and  the  stately  columns  of  the  ancient  city ;  and  these 
but  emphasized  the  tumult,  the  clangor,  and  the  uproar  of 
the  native  fair. 

When  our  people  went  down  to  the  car,  Adrian,  who  was 
standing  near  it,  said,  *'  It  is  so  funny  to  see  the  Arabs  going 
into  the  fair.  They  fight  so  at  the  gate.  They  do  not  like 
to  give  up  any  money,  even  for  the  entrance  fee.     They  are 

[225] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

like  cats;  they  scratch  and  squabble  with  the  gatekeeper, 
each  one  of  them.'' 

Soon  the  car  was  speeding  in  the  direction  of  Lambessa. 
On  the  road  they  were  constantly  hindered  by  trudging 
natives,  flocks  of  sheep  and  goats,  and  the  usual  accompani- 
ments of  these  Arab  fairs.  Always  the  wide  plains  spread 
away  to  the  serene  mountains,  giving  a  sense  of  freedom  and 
peace  to  our  travellers.  At  twenty-six  kilometres,  they  saw 
a  body  of  cavalry  exercising  their  horses  in  a  vast  field,  and 
the  car  came  soon  to  a  great,  square,  castle-like  building,  the 
barracks  and  prison  of  the  soldiers;  and  then  the  ruins  of 
the  ancient  city  were  seen  below,  spread  over  the  plains,  but 
only  a  few  standing  columns. 

' '  There  seems  to  be  no  one  here  to  show  us  around, ' ' 
exclaimed  the  Commander. 

* '  All  the  better, '  ^  replied  the  Other-one,  * '  we  shall  have 
the  fun  of  studying  it  all  out  and  reading  of  it  by  ourselves. 
I  am  rather  surfeited  with  guides.  They  won't  any  of 
them,  give  one  a  moment  to  think,  but  keep  pouring  in- 
formation into  one,  until  one  has  only  a  hazy  idea  of 
everything. ' ' 

*'That  is  rather  droll  from  you,  who  are  trying  to  learn 
everything  about  everything  you  see!  "  returned  the  Com- 
mander laughingly. 

*  *  Well !  with  my  book  I  can  take  or  leave  what  I  want. 
Here  is  all  about  Lambessa  ' ' ;  and,  as  they  walked  down  over 
the  dewy  grass,  she  imparted  the  following  to  her  companion. 

**  This  town  was  built  by  the  Romans  in  A.  D.  125,  for 
the  headquarters  of  a  legion,  charged  with  the  defence  of 
North  Africa.  Recent  excavations  show  the  form  and  size 
of  the  Roman  camp.  A  large  population  soon  occupied  the 
city,  which  spread  over  some  miles  and  Lambaesa  (the  ancient 
name)  became  rich  and  prosperous.  The  town  was  sur- 
rounded by  ramparts  and  entered  by  four  gates,  two  of  which 
can  still  be  seen." 

Our  people  now  came  up  to  a  large  building,  at  the  cross- 
ing of  the  streets,  that  divided  the  city  at  right  angles. 

[  226  ] 


•»*> 


TIMGAD   TO   BATNA 

*'  This  is  certainly  a  grand  as  well  as  an  elegant  building. 
This  must  be  the  Praetorium,  which  is  spoken  of  here  as  the 
principal  ruin.  Look  at  the  massive  columns  in  front;  the 
interior  seems  just  like  a  vast  hall.  It  reads  *  that  this  might 
have  served  for  reunions  for  the  officers  of  the  camp.'  " 

The  pair  walked  in  among  the  debris,  trying  to  identify, 
as  well  as  they  could,  the  different  ruins.  They  came  to  what 
must  have  been  the  Forum  with  some  columns  standing,  hav- 
ing probably  been  replaced,  and  also  what  they  decided  to 
have  been  the  temple,  dedicated  to  Jupiter,  Minerva,  and 
Juno,  with  columns  also.  The  ruins  were  a  vast  conglomera- 
tion, and  it  was  not  easy  to  make  out  exactly  what  they  were 
without  a  learned  archaeologist  at  one's  elbow.  The  town 
seemed  to  have  no  special  plan.  Our  travellers  returned  to 
gaze  at  the  great  and  imposing  Praetorium.  The  Commander, 
pacing  it  off,  found  it  to  be  ninety-two  feet  by  seventy-two 
and  he  decided  it  to  be  forty-six  feet  high.  They  walked 
down  one  paved  street  with  many  columns  lying  around,  and 
at  one  side  some  curious  barrel-shaped  stones  attracted  their 
attention.  There  were  one  or  two  triangular  in  shape,  and 
there  were  some  rudely  sculptured  inscriptions  on  the  end. 
They  looked  like  queer  gravestones.  '*  I  am  certain,  how- 
ever," said  the  Commander,  **  that  they  were  used  as  votive 
offerings,  and  were  placed  in  the  temples  of  the  gods.  We 
have  never  seen  anything  before  like  them.*' 

As  they  walked  up  to  the  car  the  Other-one  opened  her 
book,  saying  **  This  is  an  interesting  bit:  *  About  three  kilo- 
metres to  the  north  of  here,  there  is  a  mausoleum,  a  square 
surmounted  by  a  pyramid.  It  held  the  remains  of  a  pre- 
fect of  the  third  legion.  Flavins  Maximus  by  name.  It 
was  standing  still  in  1849,  but  threatened  to  tumble 
down.  A  Colonel  Carbucca  had  the  idea  to  restore  it. 
He  confided  the  task  to  one  of  his  aides-de-camp,  who,  assisted 
by  eight  men,  tore  the  monument  down  to  the  foundations, 
and  numbered  the  stones  in  order  to  replace  them  immedi- 
ately. About  four  feet  under  the  soil  they  found  a  sheath 
of  lead  in  which  were  a  terra  cotta  lamp  and  a  vase  of  glass 

[227] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

holding  some  ashes.  It  was  all  that  remained  of  poor  Flavins 
Maximns.  These  were  returned  to  the  same  place.  Then 
an  entire  battalion  filed  before  the  restored  tomb  and  with 
a  musketry  fire  saluted  him  whom  the  soldiers  had  a  right  to 
regard  as  an  ancestor  —  he,  like  themselves,  had  given  his 
life  to  the  service  of  his  country. 

The  Two  went  to  find  the  car,  which  for  a  wonder,  had 
not  even  one  native  near  it.  They  stopped  a  few  moments 
at  the  little  museum  the  garden  of  which  held  most  of  the 
objects  found  among  the  ruins, —  mutilated  statues,  broken 
columns,  funeral  monuments,  and  the  other  interesting  things 
that  would  fill  an  archaeologist's  heart  with  joy.  Inside,  there 
were  some  beautiful  mosaics  from  the  baths.  They  had  seen 
afar,  on  a  hill,  a  fine  arch;  the  little  old  guardian  at  the 
museum  told  them  it  was  the  arch  of  Septimus  Severus. 
Then  they  were  off  for  Batna,  meeting  stragglers  on  the  road 
for  the  fair  at  Timgad,  some  driving  tired  sheep  and  goats, 
others  riding  weary-looking  donkeys.  How  far  had  they 
come,  and  when  would  they  arrive  ? 

The  car  rolled  through  Batna,  a  rather  pretty  town,  with 
wide  streets,  bordered  with  trees,  but  interesting  only  as 
point  of  departure  for  some  glorious  trips. 

The  Other-one  was  in  a  talkative  mood  and  she  exclaimed 
to  the  Commander,  as  they  bowled  on  over  the  good  road : 

* '  Now  we  are  really  off  for  Biskra !  It  is  the  one  town  I 
have  heard  more  about  than  any  other  in  Africa.  They  say 
the  Arabs  call  it  the  Queen  of  the  Desert.  It  is  extolled  for 
its  climate,  its  beauty,  its  Oriental  life,  and  there  is  the  won- 
derful garden  described  so  deliciously  by  the  author  of  *  The 
Garden  of  Allah.'  I  long  more  for  Biskra  than  any  other 
city  we  have  planned  to  see.  Now  look  at  the  Aures!  those 
lovely  mountains  of  rose  and  gold  at  sunset,  with  a  thousand 
changing  tints  by  day ;  we  are  to  live  with  them  for  days  to 
come!  The  highest  peaks  of  Tunisia  or  Algeria  rise  from 
them." 

The  car  went  on  through  a  country  of  cultivated  fields; 
then  came  sandy  wastes  —  a  foretaste  of  the  Desert.     By 

[  228  ] 


TIMGAD  TO   BATNA 

noon,  they  saw  on  one  side,  great,  scarred,  rocky  peaks, 
and  masses  of  grim  and  rugged  rocks  piled  up,  red  and 
ochreous,  shutting  off  the  sky.  As  they  came  nearer,  they 
perceived  a  great  gash  in  them  beyond  which  the  sky  was 
visible. 

*  *  It  is  El  Kantara,  the  gateway  to  the  Desert !  *  *  cried  the 
Other-one,  and  she  felt  the  thrill  that  one  experiences  upon 
approaching  a  place,  or  seeing  anything,  about  which  one  has 
read  and  imagined  much. 

While  they  sat  in  the  Oriental-looking  little  dining-room 
of  the  inn  at  the  entrance  of  the  gorge,  eating  the  omnipres- 
ent omelette  —  always  good,  wherever  the  Frenchman  dwells, 
—  the  Other-one,  according  to  her  usual  custom,  began  to  tell 
all  she  had  learned  about  the  Gorge  of  El  Kantara. 

The  Great  Gorge,  through  which  our  Motorists  were  to  go, 
the  Arabs  call  the  Foum-es-Sahara,  or,  the  Mouth  of  the 
Sahara.  This  gateway  to  the  mysterious  Desert,  is  no  more 
than  a  hundred  and  twenty  yards  wide,  between  two  great 
walls  of  rock  four  hundred  feet  high,  and  it  is  only  three 
hundred  and  fifty-two  yards  long.  The  contrast  between  the 
rocky  plateaux  and  the  oases  is  most  striking.  Reclus  says: 
**  The  Orient  shows  itself  suddenly  through  a  golden  gate- 
way. It  is  a  firm  belief  among  the  Arabs,  which  is  partly 
justified  by  the  reality,  that  the  rocks  of  El  Kantara  arrest, 
on  their  summits,  all  the  clouds  of  the  Tell:  the  rain  comes 
there  to  vanish.  On  one  side  is  the  region  of  winter ;  on  the 
other,  the  hot,  pulsating  summer.  Above  is  the  Tell ;  below, 
the  Sahara.  On  one  side,  the  mountain  is  black  and  the  color 
of  the  rain;  on  the  other,  rose  and  the  color  of  serene 
weather !  '  * 

There  was  a  Roman  fortress  here  once,  and  there  are  frag- 
ments of  it  scattered  everywhere  around.  It  was  called  then, 
Calceus  Herculis,  for  the  Romans  pretended  to  believe  that 
the  gorge  had  been  opened  by  a  blow  from  the  foot  of 
Hercules.  * ' 

Fortified,  mentally  and  physically,  the  Motorists  betook 
themselves  to  their  car  and  were  soon  rolling  over  the  road 

[229] 


A  MOTOR   FLIGHT 

through  the  gorge.  On  one  side,  the  river  of  El  Kantara 
boiled  over  the  rocks,  then  plunged  under  the  Roman  bridge 
with  its  ruined  arch.  As  the  car  went  on  through  the  gorge, 
the  great,  yellow,  scarred  rocks  rose  in  pinnacles  to  the  sky  and 
seemed  about  to  close  together  and  crush  the  motor  and  all 
in  it. 

The  Other-one  looked  back  for  a  moment  where,  under  the 
leaden  sky,  the  pink  flush  of  the  fruit  trees  and  the  green 
of  the  pepper-trees  seemed  to  have  grown  duller.  Suddenly 
she  felt  a  warm,  suave  air  bathe  her  face,  and  before  her 
she  had  a  view  of  hundreds  of  waving  palms  against  a  pale, 
soft  sky.  They  had  indeed  left  behind  the  cold  wind  and  the 
gray  sky.  Before  them  was  the  great  oasis  of  ninety  thousand 
palms.  Beyond,  and  bej^ond,  stretched  away  the  yellow  and 
gray  and  the  dull  green  of  the  great  Desert,  barren  and 
mysterious. 

The  car  passed  down  through  some  native  villages,  on  the 
banks  of  the  River  Kantara;  Khrekar  on  the  left  bank,  and 
Kbour-el- Abbas  on  the  right,  with  flourishing  gardens,  and 
square  towers  here  and  there,  where  the  watchers  guard  the 
fruit  when  ripe.  The  houses  of  sun-dried  brick  were  win- 
dowless,  with  long  poles  sticking  out  from  the  tops.  Mats 
were  spread  before  some  of  the  open  doors,  and  natives 
stretched  out  on  them  regarded  the  car  with  languid  inter- 
est. When  the  motor  had  passed  beyond  the  villages,  the 
road  grew  even  more  rough,  and  sand  dunes  rose,  rolling  off 
to  the  mountains  of  Djebel  Selloum.  Then  a  wide  plain 
stretched  away  with  the  green  patches  of  wheat  and  barley 
planted  by  the  nomads,  whose  low  tents  were  seen  here  and 
there.  Now  they  passed  a  caravan  of  laden  camels,  some 
having  families  of  babies,  and  pots  and  jars,  mixed  together 
in  the  big  panniers.  Looking  back,  the  travellers  saw 
the  mountains  fold  on  fold,  and  the  Other-one  thought 
they  seemed  like  long  rows  of  Arabs,  kneeling,  wrap- 
ped in  their  burnouses,  and  praying  with  their  faces  turned 
to  the  north ;  or,  nuns  on  bended  knees,  devoutly  imploring 
mercy  for  their  sins  or  those  of  others. 

[  230  ] 


TIMGAD  TO  BATNA 

Though  the  air  was  warm  and  soft,  there  were  gray  clouds 
that  floated  across  the  sun  at  times,  casting  long  blue  shadows 
on  the  plain  and  making  the  ravines  of  the  mountains  deeper 
in  color.  Some  kilometres  from  Biskra,  the  travellers  crossed 
over  the  Col  de  Sfa,  and  looked  down  across  the  desert,  which, 
it  seemed  to  them,  was  beginning  to  cast  its  spell  over  them, 
though  they  were  only  on  its  border.  The  rolling  hills  of 
sand,  the  little  green  patches  of  grain,  the  rugged  masses  of 
rock  cropping  out,  the  silence,  the  mystery  of  it  all,  began  to 
enfold  them.  The  wonderful  oasis  of  Biskra,  with  a  hundred 
and  fifty  thousand  palms,  showed  against  the  white  clouds 
and  the  blue  sky.  The  car  approached  the  town  and  entered 
the  main  street  with  its  low  houses,  its  shops  full  of  articles 
beloved  by  tourists ;  then  ran  past  the  square,  which  has  some 
rather  melancholy-looking  palms  and  feathery  pepper-trees, 
and  went  around  the  circle  containing  Falguiere*s  statue  of 
the  soldier-priest,  Cardinal  Lavigerie,  grasping  the  crozier  in 
his  hand  like  a  sword,  and  looking  off  to  the  Desert  as  if  to 
call  all  his  believers  to  carry  on  the  work  he  had  begun  in 
Africa.  The  car  stopped  before  the  white,  Moorish-looking, 
arcaded  hotel  where  venders  were  squatting  on  the  tiled 
floor  of  the  veranda,  their  wares  making  a  fascinating  mass 
of  color.  Some  had  gay  Oriental  embroideries,  scarfs,  jack- 
ets, and  robes  in  brilliant  reds,  yellows,  and  blues.  Others 
sat  before  small  tables  with  piles  of  pipes  with  amber  mouth- 
pieces and  decorated  with  bright-colored  tassels.  A  white- 
headed,  huge-turbaned  old  fellow,  with  subtle  eyes,  had  a 
heap  of  carved-wood  canes  before  him,  and  a  low  table,  piled 
with  nickel  and  silver  boxes,  decorated  with  coral  and  tur- 
quoise; and  around  these,  chains,  bracelets,  necklaces,  and 
rings  were  strewn  or  disposed  so  as  to  catch  the  eye  of  the 
tourist  and  beguile  him  to  empty  his  pocketbook. 

All  these  enticing  Oriental  things,  with  the  brilliant  blue 
sky  overhead ;  the  white  buildings,  with  a  dome  or  two  show- 
ing beyond;  the  golden  sunshine;  the  palms  raising  their 
feathery  fronds  along  the  road ;  the  warm  air ;  the  natives  in 
their  white  burnouses  crowding  around  the  car;  the  indolent 

[231] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

* 

tourists  lounging  on  the  balconies  above;  the  general  air  of 
languor ;  the  feeling  that  nothing  need  be  done  to-day  —  that 
the  morrow  would  suffice  —  all  this  gave  our  Motorists  the 
impression  that  at  last  they  were  in  the  land  of  dolce  far 
niente,  and  that  all  the  winds  and  cold  really  had  been  left 
behind  the  rocks  of  El  Kantara. 

The  genial  landlord  came  out  to  give  them  a  cordial  greet- 
ing. He  led  them  through  a  long  hall  and  corridors  hung 
with  gay  Indian  draperies  and  filled  with  palms  in  great  jars, 
and  bamboo  easy-chairs,  in  which  people  in  light  summer 
apparel  sat  absorbing  tea  at  fanciful  little  tables.  From  their 
gay  and  cheerful  chamber  the  travellers  stepped  out  on  a 
wide  balcony  and  were  at  once  enveloped  in  sunshine  and 
heat.  From  here  they  could  look  down  on  the  streets  where 
the  fascinating  Oriental  life  was  flowing  along.  They  saw 
white  minarets  and  domes.  One  great  dome,  the  Other-one 
took  for  that  of  a  great  mosque,  but  it  is  only  that  of  the 
Casino  where  the  winter  dwellers  in  this  sun-washed  land 
find  entertainment  to  beguile  the  hours  when  they  hang 
heavily. 

*  *  What  shall  we  do  now  ?  Go  out  to  view  the  town  ?  '  *  asked 
the  Commander. 

His  companion  made  answer,  * '  No !  let  us  just  sit  the  rest 
of  the  afternoon  away,  and  do  nothing  but  feel,  in  this  hot 
sunshine  and  languid  air,  that  we  are  in  a  summer  land! '' 


[232] 


CHAPTER  XVII 

A  DAY  IN  BISKRA  —  THE  LANDON  GARDEN  —  A  VISIT  T^ 
SIDI-OKBA. 

THE  question  is/*  said  the  Commander  the  next  morn- 
ing, as  they  came  down  prepared  to  sally  forth,  **  shall 
we  bore  ourselves  with  a  guide,  or  follow  our  own  sweet  will 
in  viewing  this  town?  '* 

**  With  what  there  is  to  see,  I  do  not  think  we  need  a 
guide.  There  is  the  market,  then  the  garden  of  Count  Lan- 
don,  the  negro  village,  and  the  general  saunter  through  all 
Biskra.  They  say  that  here,  however,  one  ought  to  take  one 
guide  to  keep  off  the  others,**  answered  the  Other-one,  as 
she  skilfully  piloted  the  Commander  past  the  fascinating  piles 
of  Oriental  fabrics  and  the  table  where  necklaces  and  brace- 
lets called  to  him.  He  had  a  somewhat  bewildered  and  unde- 
cided air  as  they  came  out  into  the  brilliant  sunshine  and 
walked  away  from  the  hotel.  They  repelled  four  or  five  press- 
ing guides  who  rushed  after  them,  offering  to  show  them  all 
Biskra  for  **  very  sheep  price,"  five  francs,  with  pour-hoire 
at  discretion.  Well  rid  of  these,  our  couple  felt  a  sense  of 
freedom,  and  wandered  on  down  the  street,  past  the  statue 
of  the  warlike  Cardinal. 

**  He  was  a  wonderful  man,  with  the  courage  of  his  convic- 
tions,*' said  the  Commander.  **  He  was  the  French  prelate 
who  did  so  much  for  Africa  and  the  Arabs.  He  was  a  war- 
rior priest.  He  instigated  the  crusade  against  the  slave 
trade.  During  an  epidemic,  he  did  much  humane  work  among 
the  Arabs.  Once,  he  went  in  full  archbishop's  robes,  up 
into  the  mountain  strongholds  of  the  unruly  Kabyles,  and 
explained  that  Islamism  had  been  forced  upon  them  by  their 
ancestors,  and  he  called  upon  them  to  return  to  their  ancient 
taith.     He  instituted  the  order  of  the  White  Fathers,  who 

[  233  ] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

wear  the  white  Arab  burnous  as  their  habit.  He  died  sad- 
dened by  his  unfruitful  efforts  to  obtain  encouragement  for 
extending  the  work  of  the  Church  and  the  French  rule  in 
Africa.  He  was  buried  under  the  altar  of  the  church  built 
on  the  hill  at  Carthage.  We  shall  see  it  when  we  go  there, 
also  the  monastery  of  the  White  Fathers. ' ' 

* '  It  gives  me  a  heartache  now,  to  look  at  the  statue ;  he 
does  not  seem,  however,  like  a  man  who  could  ever  have 
failed.'' 

Then  they  walked  down  the  street  to  the  end  of  the  Avenue 
MacMahon,  by  the  little  shops,  and  down  by  the  public  gar- 
den with  its  dusty  palms  and  weary-looking  plants.  People 
were  coming  and  going  on  the  sunny  streets,  the  Arabs  seek- 
ing the  shady  side  when  they  could.  There  were  negroes, 
black  as  jet  and  ugly  as  sin,  their  color  rendered  more  intense 
in  contrast  with  the  single  long,  white  garment  they  wore; 
bronzed  Arabs,  in  their  white  burnouses,  loitering  along  and 
making  the  air  blue  around  them  with  cigarette  smoke; 
tourists  (men  and  women)  Americans,  English,  French,  and 
Germans, —  all  nationalities, —  carrying  their  own  stamp. 
The  German  men  were  distinguished  by  rotundity  of  figure 
and  alpaca  dusters  more  or  less  wrinkled ;  the  German  women, 
by  their  dress  devoid  of  style  and  ill  fitting,  but  practical  to 
the  last  degree.  The  English  were  hurrying  in  and  out  of 
the  little  shops,  hunting  for  bargains,  the  Americans  seemed 
weary  and  bored;  while  the  French,  male  and  female,  had 
the  air  of  not  understanding  anything  they  saw,  and  of  not 
earing  whether  they  did  or  not. 

Our  couple  turned  down  a  street  leading  to  the  market, 
leaving  the  shops,  which  for  once  seemed  to  have  no  attraction 
for  the  Commander.  He  glanced,  in  passing,  once  or  twice 
at  the  windows,  and  muttered,  **  Trash!  nothing  but  modern 
trash!  "  Now  they  heard  the  sound  of  drums,  a  beating  of 
tom-toms,  and  a  whining,  nasal  sort  of  chanting.  Looking 
down  the  street,  they  saw  some  strange  figures  coming  toward 
them.  There  was  a  big,  black-as-ebony  negro,  with  bulging 
yellow  eyes  and  blubber  lips.    He  was  dressed  in  skins,  dec- 

[234] 


A   DAY  IN  BISKRA 

orated  with  bits  of  mirror,  long  chains  of  animals*  teeth, 
shells,  and  what  not.  He  was  shouting,  leaping,  rolling  around 
on  his  heels,  a  most  grotesque  sight.  An  equally  black  negro, 
clad  in  a  scarlet  coat  (open  over  his  coal-black  breast)  and 
white  breeches,  carried  the  tom-tom,  upon  which  he  beat  con- 
tinuously. Some  women,  arrayed  in  red  and  yellow  dresses, 
their  heads  bound  in  scarfs  of  the  same  colors,  were  sing- 
ing the  nasal  chants  our  couple  had  heard.  Some  small 
natives  trailed  after  them,  and  two  or  three  Arabs.  The 
black  man  in  the  red  coat,  seeing  our  pair  regarding  him, 
came  up  to  them  holding  out  his  hand.  A  friendly  bronzed 
European  stopped  near  the  Commander  and,  turning  to  him, 
said,  *  *  Rather  interesting,  though  very  primitive  music ! 
These  blacks  you  see  in  Biskra,  perhaps  you  do  not  know, 
were  once  sold  for  slaves.  They  came  down  from  the  Sudan. 
They  are  the  happiest  people  in  all  Algeria,  with  their  tom- 
toms and  their  tambourines.  They  are  seen  at  every  Arab 
fete,  and  they  will  do  anything  to  gain  a  little  money  for 
drink.  We  see  these  dancers  and  tom-tom  beaters  also  fre- 
quently in  the  streets;  they  add  greatly  to  the  picturesque 
efiPect  of  the  town.  You  are  going  to  the  market!  Then  I 
will  walk  along  with  you." 

So  talking,  they  reached  the  market,  leaving  the  dancing, 
grinning  blacks  behind,  but  the  discordant  music  of  the  sing- 
ing and  the  beating  of  the  tom-tom  pursued  them.  They 
passed  a  Moorish  cafe  with  rugs  spread  out  before  the  door. 
On  these,  Arabs  lounged,  some  gazing  off  into  vacancy,  others 
playing  dominoes,  all  drinking  little  cups  of  coffee.  The 
market  is  held  in  a  wide  space  around  a  sort  of  pavilion  in 
the  centre,  with  a  peaked  roof  supported  by  pillars.  The 
noise  here  was  incessant,  but  the  beating  of  the  tom-tom  pulsed 
through  the  babble  of  voices,  the  nasal  calls,  and  the  strident 
braying  of  donkeys.  Here  were  all  sorts  of  people, —  men 
and  boys, —  venders  seated  on  the  ground  with  their  goods 
spread  before  them,  buyers  standing  or  squatting  down  to 
examine  their  purchases,  bargaining,  gesticulating,  shouting. 
There  were  piles  of  everything  one  could  think  of  spread  out 

[235] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

before  the  sellers,  oranges  and  lemons  with  their  golden  color, 
heaps  of  vegetables,  dried  corn  in  little  piles  on  cloths,  great 
clumps  of  dusty  dates,  and  trays  of  the  pale  brown,  flat 
loaves  of  Arab  bread.  There  were  on  one  side  stalls  of  all 
sorts  of  fanciful  things  gay  in  color  —  baskets,  barbaric  har- 
nesses, saddle-bags  embroidered  and  adorned  with  gay  tassels, 
knives  in  sheaths  of  red  leather,  long  strings  of  beads;  and 
a  man  was  dangling  stuffed  lizards  and  giving  vent  to  rough 
outcries,  probably  as  to  their  merits  and  uses.  The  whole 
place  was  sibilant,  quivering  in  color  and  heat,  a  most  fas- 
cinating place  to  the  travellers  from  the  cold  North,  the  color 
especially  delighting  their  eyes,  and  the  different  types  of 
humanity,  from  the  jet-black  negro  to  the  pale,  cream-tinted 
Arab  dude,  exciting  their  curiosity. 

**  Who  are  the  very  dark-skinned  men  with  dark  bur- 
nouses and  turbans,  and  veils  over  their  faces?  '*  asked  the 
Commander. 

**  They  are  the  Touaregs,"  answered  the  stranger.  *'  They 
live  far  down  on  the  Desert  below  Touggourt,  and  command 
all  the  caravan  routes.  They  are  a  fierce  race,  and  have 
given  the  French  much  trouble.  Those  men  in  long  shape- 
less coats,  which  are  called  gandouras,  with  fringe  and 
camePs-hair  tassels  hanging  from  the  belt,  and  with  their 
haiks  loosely  bound  so  as  to  cover  the  lower  part  of  their 
faces,  are  Mozabites.  There  is  a  colony  of  them  spread  over 
the  Desert.  They,  too,  are  a  warlike  people,  and  were  the 
last  to  submit  to  the  French.  They  come  from  a  hundred  and 
sixty  miles  beyond  Laghouat.'* 

* '  We  have  been  to  their  country,  * '  said  the  Commander. 

"  Ah!  then  you  know  they  are  an  industrious  people,  and 
travel  everywhere.  They  are  often  shopkeepers  in  large 
towns,  as  well  as  butchers,  coal-dealers,  and  bankers. 
The  others  are  a  mixture  of  Arabs  and  Kabyles,  who  are 
called  Biskrans.  They  come  from  the  oases  all  along  the 
Desert.  You  cannot  tell  them  very  well  from  the  Arabs, 
though  they  are  darker,  owing  to  an  intermixture  with  the 

[  236  ] 


'HI 


IN  THE  GORGE  OF  EL  KANTARA, 
OLD  ROMAN  HRTDGK,  RESTORED 


THE  OASIS  OF  EL  KANTARA,  AND  RIVER 


IN  THE  GARDEN  OF  BENEVENT:  THE 

PARAPET-WALL   OVERLOOKING 

THE  DESERT,  BISKRA 


ENTRANCE  INTO  THE  GARDEN  OF  COUNT  LANDON,  BISKRA 


A  DAY  IN  BISKRA 

negroes.  The  women  are  most  picturesque  in  their  dress, 
as  you  see.    There  are  two  coming  down  the  street.'* 

The  Commander  and  the  Lady  turned  to  look.  They  saw 
two  women  in  gay  red  dresses,  great  loops  of  braided  hair 
and  wool  framing  their  brown  faces,  scarlet  and  yellow 
foulards  bound  around  their  heads.  Their  black  arms  were 
bare  and  covered  with  bracelets;  necklaces  hung  down  over 
t)ieir  breasts  and  clinked  as  they  walked.  One  had  a  white 
burnous  caught  over  her  chest,  and  she  carried  a  little  chip- 
munk of  a  baby  wrapped  in  a  white  wool  burnous.  The 
Commander  made  a  step  forward  as  he  caught  sight  of  the 
jewellery,  but  the  two  women  turned  away  so  swiftly,  when 
they  saw  him  looking  at  them,  that  he  had  no  chance  to  bar- 
gain for  their  jewellery. 

**  The  Biskrans,'*  continued  the  stranger,  **  are  the  porters 
and  water-carriers.  Telling  fortunes  is  one  of  their  special 
trades.'* 

After  lingering  some  time  to  watch  the  fascinating,  kalei- 
doscopic changes  in  the  busy  market,  where  were  mixed  all  the 
shades  of  white,  cream,  coffee-color,  the  dirt  of  the  burnouses, 
the  browns  of  the  gandouras,  the  pinks,  grays,  and  reds  of 
the  dress  of  the  splendid-looking  kaids  whom  the  stranger 
pointed  out,  our  couple  reluctantly  turned  away  after  thank- 
ing the  gentleman  who  had  volunteered  to  help  them  to 
understand  what  they  saw.  Asking  the  way  to  the  celebrated 
garden,  they  walked  on  down  the  white  road  passing  groups 
that  made  them  feel  they  were  really  in  an  Oriental  land  bor- 
dering upon  the  Desert.  Laden  camels  came  swaying  down  the 
road  with  great  bags,  full  or  empty,  attached  to  their  sad- 
dles; donkeys  trundled  along;  now  came  a  flock  of  black 
goats  tossing  their  heads  in  derision  of  their  Arab  drivers; 
dark-skinned  men  strode  along  with  a  proud  bearing,  though 
their  gandouras,  or  burnouses,  were  in  rags  and  their  bare 
feet  and  legs  white  with  dust;  then  the  women  like  gay- 
plumaged  birds,  with  their  bits  of  bronzed  babies  slung  to 
their  backs,  and  ragged,  half  bare,  brown  children,  loping 

[237] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

after  them.  Over  all,  the  brilliant  blue  sky,  the  golden  sun- 
shine, the  waving  palms  along  the  road. 

The  travellers  walked  down  the  Avenue  Lallemand  and 
turned  off  to  the  left,  as  directed,  to  the  village  negre.  Here 
were  narrow  lanes,  dusty  and  pebbly;  the  doors  of  the  mud 
houses  stood  open,  while  black  men  lounged  in  the  shade  of 
them;  naked,  jetty-black  babies  rolled  in  the  dust,  and  little 
girls,  in  red  and  yellow  cotton  gowns,  ran  out  to  call  for 
sous.  Our  people  hastened  to  get  out  of  the  squalid  and 
malodorous  village.  On  the  white  road  again,  they  looked 
ahead  and  saw  a  long  white  wall  with  loop-holes  in  it,  and 
a  fringe  of  palm-trees.  Little  rills  of  water  ran  down  one 
side  of  the  road;  some  distance  on  the  other  was  the  dried 
bed  of  the  Biskra  River;  and  beyond,  the  plain  palpitating 
with  heat,  spread  to  the  rose-tinted  and  ethereal  Aures 
Mountains.  A  train  of  camels  coming  down  the  road  with 
their  native  drivers,  gave  to  all  the  Oriental  flavor,  and  the 
travellers  felt  that  at  last  they  were  in  the  Africa  of  their 
imaginings. 

At  length,  they  came  to  a  great  white  gate  opening  on  to 
the  street,  and  entered  the  entrancing  gardens  which  the 
French  nobleman  has  planted  with  every  variety  of  tropical 
and  European  trees,  and  who,  with  great  kindness,  allows  the 
public  who  are  well  behaved  to  wander  therein  at  will.  To 
come  in  out  of  the  hot  sunshine  and  saunter  up  and  down 
through  long  alleys  in  deep  shade  under  the  great  palms  was 
bliss  to  the  Commander  and  the  Lady.  The  only  sound  they 
heard  was  the  rippling  of  the  water  flowing  along  near  the 
paths  and  the  contented  twitter  of  birds  hidden  in  the  foliage. 
"When  they  had  gone  up  and  down  the  alleys,  some  in  deep 
shadow,  others  flecked  with  sunlight,  which  dropped  down 
through  the  openings  in  the  tufts  of  foliage  and  dappled  the 
paths;  and  when  they  had  looked  at  the  white  buildings, 
especially  at  the  little  smoking-pavilion,  smothered  in  masses 
of  Bougainvillea  blossoms,  they  came  out  into  the  blazing  sun- 
shine again  and  went  down  to  the  parapet  wall  that  extends 
along  the  garden,  above  the  road.     There  are  seats  at  inter- 

[238] 


A   DAY  IN  BISKRA 

vals  in  this  wall,  and  the  couple  sat  down  there  for  a  while 
to  look  off  to  the  desert,  shimmering  in  the  sun,  toward  the 
exquisite  mountains  with  their  pearly  tints.  *'  Here,"  said 
the  Other-one,  '*  I  can  only  think  of  poor  Domini  in  the  Gar- 
den of  Allah.  She  haunts  this  beautiful  garden,  and  I  can 
see  it  with  her  eyes;  she  seems  a  real  and  living  presence 
here.  There  is  a  shade  of  melancholy  over  all  the  place  where 
she  loved  and  suffered."  It  was  with  reluctance  the  Two  left 
this  enchanted  place  and  went  back  to  the  hotel. 

That  afternoon,  under  the  guidance  of  a  bony  Arab  with 
bulging  eyes,  our  Motorists  rolled  off  over  a  rough  road  to 
Sidi-Okba,  leaving  the  palms  of  old  Biskra  to  the  right  and 
crossing  the  almost  dry  bed  of  the  River  Biskra.  Beyond  this 
they  had  a  foretaste  of  the  real  Desert  in  the  sandy  plain 
with  scrub  grass  growing  in  patches,  stretching  far  to  the 
Aures  which  had  spots  of  dark  green  at  the  base  of  their 
spurs.  The  oasis  of  Sidi-Okba,  at  first  a  blue  line  on  the  hor- 
i  !i.  resolved  itself  into  masses  of  feathery  palms,  of  which 
it  16  baid  there  are  sixty  thousand.  The  guide,  who  put  him- 
self in  evidence  at  every  possible  chance,  began  to  tell  them 
in  a  high  sing-song  tone,  **  Many  pilgrims  come  here  to  see 
the  mosque  and  tomb  of  the  great  Arab  conqueror.  It  is 
the  oldest  Mohammedan  building  in  Africa.  Sidi-ben-Nafir 
went  forth  with  some  African  tribesmen  and  conquered  all 
Africa  from  Egypt  to  Tangiers,  in  682.  He  did  in  so  short 
a  time  what  others  had  taken  a  long  time  to  do.  When  he 
had  conquered  all  these  countries,  he  spurred  his  horse  into 
the  Atlantic  and  said  that  only  such  a  barrier  could  prevent 
him  from  forcing  every  nation  beyond  it  who  knew  not  God, 
to  worship  Him  or  die." 

**  Ask  the  guide  if  we  shall  be  likely  to  meet  Sidi-Okba 
at  the  mosque?  "  said  the  Commander. 

**  Oh,  no !  Monsieur,  he  is  dead.  He  died  in  682,"  responded 
the  bony  Arab  solemnly. 

The  car  now  passed  through  the  little  village  with  its  low 
one-storied  houses  of  sun-dried  bricks.  Men  were  lounging 
at  the  open  doors,  women  grinding  their  corn  on  flat  stones, 

[239] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

and  little  half-naked  children  were  rolling  in  the  dust.  The 
coming  of  the  car  produced  a  commotion,  and  all  ran  pell- 
mell  after  it,  the  children  howling  for  sous.  The  guide,  Ach- 
med,  leaped  from  the  car  and  cuffed  some  of  them  right  and 
left  with  harsh  exclamations,  then  ran  back  to  the  car  with 
the  well-pleased  air  of  an  untrained  puppy  who  has  barked 
off  some  intruders. 

*  *  Monsieur  will  notice  that  Achmed  is  one  of  the  best 
guides  of  Biskra.  He  allows  no  one  to  annoy  his  patrons. 
Monsieur  will  do  well  to  take  him  for  guide  everywhere.*' 

At  the  entrance  to  the  mosque  the  party  alighted.  The 
guide  leaped  forward  to  lead  his  patrons  through  the  en- 
trance to  the  mosque.  An  intelligent-looking  man  waiting 
there  —  in  the  whitest  of  haiks  and  burnouses,  contrasting 
greatly  with  the  dirt  around  the  court  —  came  forward  and 
took  the  party  from  Achmed 's  charge,  who  seemed  loath  to  lose 
them  out  of  his  sight;  but  the  guardian  frowned  at  him  and 
motioned  him  back  as  he  made  a  plunge  forward  after  them. 
The  man  led  them  across  the  court  of  the  mosque,  which  is 
very  roughly  made  and  is  supported  on  rude  short  columns. 
The  shrine  is  at  the  northwest  corner,  in  a  sort  of  chantry 
screened  off  from  the  mosque.  It  is  a  tomb  of  the  usual  mara- 
bout kind,  and  is  hung  with  tattered  silk ;  some  ostrich  eggs, 
and  a  tawdry  gilt  mirror  frame,  are  among  its  decorations. 
The  guardian  then  took  them  down  through  the  mosque  to  see 
a  wonderful  door.  There  were  many  worshippers'  kneeling 
on  the  matting  spread  here  and  there,  bowing,  rising,  and 
mumbling  their  prayers.  They  were  of  a  poorer  and  more 
wretched-looking  type  than  our  people  had  yet  seen  in  the 
mosques. 

"  There  are  thousands  of  pilgrims  who  come  here  yearly," 
said  the  guardian.  * '  It  is  a  sacred  place.  The  mihrah  points 
exactly  toward  Mecca,  for  the  exact  site  was  revealed  in  a 
dream  to  Sidi-Okba.  Here  is  a  pillar  on  which  is  written 
in  Cufic  characters,  the  oldest  in  the  world,  *  This  is  the 
tomb  of  Okba,  son  of  Nafe.  May  God  have  mercy  upon 
him.''' 

[240] 


A  DAY  IN  BISKRA 

On  the  east  side  of  the  mosque  the  man  showed  them  a 
curious  wooden  door,  of  fine  carving,  with  color.  Then  he 
took  them  up  some  rude  steps  to  see  the  view  from  the  mina- 
ret over  the  oasis  with  its  palms,  and  the  rude  houses  nestling 
under  their  shade.  **  This  minaret,*'  said  the  guardian, 
*'  will  tremble  if  the  holy  Sidi-Okba  is  invoked  in  a  certain 
form  of  words,  which  only  our  most  holy  men  know.*' 

At  the  entrance  door  the  bony  guide  took  the  travellers 
again  in  charge,  leaping  at  them  like  a  hungry  animal. 
**  Now  we  will  go  to  the  market;  Monsieur  may  find  some- 
thing he  will  buy.*'  They  left  the  car*  at  the  door  of  the 
mosque  and  walked  down  the  crooked,  dirty  streets,  with  a 
string  of  small  and  very  unclean  children  swarming  around 
them,  in  spite  of  Achmed  's  howls  and  leapings  around  to 
ccare  them  off.  One  rather  pretty  little  girl  draped  with  a 
filthy  blue  cloth,  carried  dangling  at  the  end  of  a  string  a 
wretched  little  pigeon  which  after  ineffectual  struggles  to 
escape  had  apparently  abandoned  itself  to  its  fate  and  hung 
limp  with  closed  eyes. 

**  The  little  wretch  1  "  cried  the  Other-one,  **  tell  her  to  give 
me  the  poor  pigeon!  " 

Achmed  seized  it  without  ceremony  and  handed  it  to  the 
Lady.  Thereupon,  the  girl  broke  into  a  series  of  unearthly 
howls. 

*'  Do  stop  her!  **  exclaimed  the  Commander,  **  she  will 
call  the  entire  village  down  upon  us!  Give  her  this  silver 
and  let  us  get  away  from  here.** 

**  She  doesn't  deserve  a  sou,  but  a  sound  shaking!  "  said 
the  Lady,  as  she  smoothed  the  plumage  of  the  wretched  bird, 
and  then  sheltered  it  in  her  sleeve  until  she  should  reach  a 
place  where  she  might  let  it  fly  away  in  safety.  The  child 
stopped  her  shrieks,  and  a  look  of  joy  spread  over  her  face, 
as  she  clutched  at  the  silver  which  Achmed  gave  her  grudg- 
ingly, and  undoubtedly  would  have  put  in  his  own  pocket 
had  not  the  Commander  kept  a  stern  eye  upon  him. 

"  These  people  are  cruel  to  animals  from  childhood  up. 
See  the  wretched  donkeys,  the  moth-eaten-looking,  emaciated 

[241] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

camels,  the  meagre  cattle  and  sheep !  '  ^  said  the  Commander. 
*'  The  goat  seems  to  be  the  only  beast  that  holds  up  a  brave 
front  and  supports  his  miseries  with  fortitude,  and  here  he 
has  not  even  the  luxury  of  tin  cans  for  a  steady  diet." 

They  now  reached  the  open  square  of  the  market-place, 
limited  in  space  and  with  some  wretched  little  shops  at  one 
side  of  it.  Everything  seemed  in  a  state  of  decay.  The 
crowd  of  gesticulating,  howling  natives  were  clad  in  bur- 
nouses, coffee-colored  from  dirt  and  usage.  Even  the  donkeys 
here  had  a  more  discouraged  air  than  any  the  travellers  had 
before  seen.  The  piles  of  vegetables,  corn,  and  withered 
dates  seemed  to  have  been  excavated  from  some  tomb.  The 
guide  with  much  plunging  around,  beguiled  the  Commander 
into  one  of  the  box-like  dens  of  shops;  but  the  battered  and 
grimy  articles  placed  before  him  —  the  dried  lizards,  the 
coarse  jewellery  of  white  metal,  the  pieces  of  coral  and  shells 
on  dirty  strings  —  found  no  purchaser  in  him,  to  the  evi- 
dent sorrow  of  Achmed.  He  then  reluctantly  led  them  back 
to  the  car,  passing  a  corner  of  the  market  where  a  solitary 
palm-tree  spread  its  feathery  green  fronds,  the  only  thing  of 
loveliness  to  be  seen  anywhere.  Near  it  a  most  supercilious 
camel  lay  down,  his  awkward  legs  doubled  up.  It  was  a  com- 
fort to  see  one  poor  animal  at  ease  and  without  the  ever- 
present,  overladen  panniers.  A  woman,  stolid  and  wretched 
looking,  stood  near  to  watch  the  camel;  she  turned,  though 
languidly,  to  look  at  the  strangers,  shielding  her  heavy  eyes 
from  the  brilliant  sunshine  with  her  hand. 

It  was  a  relief  to  get  away  from  this  poor  village.  The  car 
soon  left  the  palm  oasis,  which  became  gray  and  then  faded 
into  a  soft  blue  line  on  the  horizon.  It  was  late  in  the  after- 
noon, and  the  Aures  Mountains  had  the  coloring  of  opals, 
and  the  most  exquisite  blue,  hazy  shadows  in  the  clefts  and 
gorges ;  but  the  oases  at  the  foot  of  the  spurs  were  darker  than 
before.  As  the  car  drew  near  the  town,  Achmed  bestirred 
himself  and  suggested  what  the  travellers  might  do  in  the 
way  of  sight-seeing  under  his  enlightened  guidance:  ''My 
gentleman  and  lady  will  like  much  to  see  the  Ouled  Nail 

[242] 


A   DAY   IN   BISKRA 

the  road  is  not  very  good;  have  everything  ready  at  the 
hour." 

* '  Very  good,  my  gentlemans !  Everything  will  be  ready 
at  the  time  * '  ;  then  Cherif  bowed  himself  out,  leaving  the 
impression  that  he  was  the  most  honest,  the  best  informed, 
the  most  brief  in  statement,  and  the  cleanest  of  the  guides 
they  had,  as  yet,  encountered,  if  not  very  beautiful. 

The  Other-one  was  about  to  break  into  speech  against  this 
rather  arbitrary  and  suddenly  decided  plan,  but  the  Com- 
mander skilfully,  as  one  having  much  experience,  inveigled 
her  down  to  luncheon  before  she  had  time  to  give  him  a 
piece  of  her  mind.  She,  with  equal  skill,  steered  him  past 
the  venders  on  the  veranda,  when  they  left  that  afternoon 
to  take  a  trip  to  the  villages  of  Old  Biskra,  over  a  rough  and 
stony  road.  These  are  quaint  hamlets  surrounded  by  plan- 
tations of  fine  date-palms,  enclosed  in  high  mud  walls,  the 
tops  of  which  are  stuck  full  of  dried  palm  branches,  making 
a  guard  for  the  gardens  within.  There  are  narrow  white 
lanes  on  which  the  palm-trees  cast  delightful  shade,  and  rills 
of  clear  water  running  by  the  side  of  the  road.  So  the  ride 
through  the  quaint  villages, —  the  natives  of  which  are  so 
different  from  those  of  Sidi-Okba, —  was  most  restful. 

At  the  sunset,  coming  back,  they  stopped  at  Landon  Gar- 
den—  Benevent  —  to  go  and  sit  on  the  parapet  wall  and 
watch  the  opal  tints  deepen  on  the  Aures  Mountains  and  the 
oases  at  the  foot  of  their  spurs  grow  blacker.  Then  the  moun- 
tains lost  their  rich  color  and  turned  deep  blue ;  on  the  Desert 
stretching  toward  them  little  camp  fires  glowed,  and  they 
saw  also  the  faint  little  lights  of  the  little  villages. 

A  crescent  moon  hung  high  in  the  dark  sky,  and  a  liquidly 
brilliant  star  showed  near  it.  Then  our  pair  went  home  con- 
tent with  the  rest  and  peace  of  the  day. 


[247] 


CHAPTER   XVIII 

DOWN  TO  TOUGGOURT  AND  RETURN 

A  CROWD  of  natives  in  their  burnouses  surrounded  the 
car  as  it  waited  before  the  long  veranda  of  the  hotel,  the 
next  morning  at  the  early  hour  ordered  by  the  Commander. 
There  were  a  kaid  or  two  in  pale  mauve  and  soft  green  over- 
burnouses,  to  add  dignity  to  the  departure.  A  few  early  tour- 
ists yawned  on  the  balcony  above,  wondering,  evidently,  how 
any  one  could  be  so  crazy,  in  this  dolce  far  niente  spot,  as  to 
rise  and  be  off  so  early.  Cherif  and  Adrian  were  attending 
to  the  last  preparations,  under  the  watchful  care  of  the  alert 
and  happy  Commander.  The  car  looked  unusual,  as  it  car- 
ried on  the  top  of  the  canopy,  two  huge  rolls  of  matting 
and  a  stout  shovel.  There  was  a  full  complement  of  tires  on 
top,  while  the  reservoirs  were  full  of  essence;  but  the  toilette 
necessities  and  apparel  were  reduced  to  the  minimum  in  one 
small  satchel,  though  there  was  ample  provision  of  shawls 
and  rugs  on  the  seats  for  the  cool  night  air  one  might  find 
on  the  Desert;  and  there  was  a  plethoric  basket  of  lunch, 
which  a  hard-breathing  Arab  brought  at  the  last  moment. 

The  Commander  had  said,  sententiously,  * '  We  can  live 
without  everything,  on  this  trip,  but  absolute  necessities!  '' 
So  the  pretty  Marguerite  was  to  be  left  behind,  and  the  Other- 
one  had  reduced  her  baggage  to  the  extent  of  one  extra  blouse, 
and  the  most  indispensable  of  the  toilette  articles.  She  won- 
dered, however,  when  she  saw  the  overladen  lunch-basket,  if 
they  could  not  have  done  with  less  to  eat,  and  have  carried 
more  clean  linen. 

When  Cherif  had  arranged  all  the  packages  with  bustling 
importance,  and  had  aided  the  Other-one  to  climb  to  her 
place,  while  the  pretty  Marguerite  with  a  tear-stained  face, 
handed  up  the  precious  kodaks,  he  leaped  joyously  to  his 

[248] 


TO   TOUGGOURT 

post,  and  the  Commander,  snugly  ensconced  in  his  royal  seat, 
gave  the  order  to  move  on.  Then  they  were  off,  scattering 
the  natives  right  and  left  from  before  the  car. 

The  road  led  in  the  direction  of  the  villages  of  Old  Biskra, 
leaving  the  garden  of  Benevent  to  the  left,  its  palms  green 
against  the  pink  morning  sky,  its  white  parapet  wall  seeming 
to  shut  away  its  magic  beauty  from  the  workaday  world. 

**  When  I  am  on  the  sun-baked  Desert,*'  thought  the  lady, 
**  how  I  shall  long  for  those  palm-shaded  alleys  and  the 
musical  gurgle  of  the  rills  that  flow  down  by  the  sun-flecked 
avenues!  '* 

Near  the  terminus  of  the  jingling  little  tram,  Cherif  pointed 
out  the  ruins  of  an  ancient  Turkish  fort,  from  whence,  it  be- 
ing on  a  hill,  was  a  fine  view  over  the  oasis  and  the  Desert, 
he  said.  They  had  passed,  on  the  left,  the  Hospital  Lavigerie 
which  is  managed  by  the  White  Sisters  for  the  care  of  the 
natives.  The  road  continued  on  through  the  villages  of  Old 
Biskra  with  their  palm-lined  alleys,  then  crossed  the  Oued 
Djedi.  The  Aures  Mountains  showed  up  across  the  plain, 
beautifully  soft,  with  tints  of  blue,  mauve,  and  pink,  looking 
as  if  seen  through  folds  of  gauze.  The  oases  below  their  spurs 
were  dark  like  deep  shadows.  The  sky  arched  overhead,  with 
not  a  cloud  floating  across  it.  Cherif  regarded  it  with  the 
eye  of  a  veteran  traveller. 

**  We  shall  have  a  fine  day,  my  lady,  but  I  fear  very  hot.** 

*  *  So  much  the  better !  '  *  returned  the  Lady.  *  *  I  want  to  be 
baked,  once,  on  a  desert.  Whatever  the  Desert  has  for  me, 
whether  suffering  or  joy,  I  long  to  experience  it ;  for  I  do  not 
consider  I  saw  the  real  Desert  going  to  the  country  of  Mzab.  *  * 

The  road,  full  of  ruts,  wound  now  across  the  plain,  with 
dust  bunches  of  scrub-grass  and  low  masses  of  dull  green 
terebinth  bushes,  dotting  the  gray  sand.  At  a  distance  the 
car  passed  some  low  tents  of  the  Bedouins,  then  their  camels 
feeding  near  on  the  scrub,  their  natural  food  on  the  Desert. 

"  I  wonder  what  we  are  to  feel  on  this  Desert,**  said  the 
Other-one  to  the  Commander,  as  the  car  halted  for  a  moment. 
**  My  imagination  has  been  much  affected  by  what  I  have  read. 

[249  1 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

Some  travellers  say  that  it  is  full  of  mystery,  of  subtle  tints  of 
color ;  that  it  gives  one  the  feeling  inspired  by  the  thought  of 
eternity.  Others  say  it  is  a  great,  desolate,  sandy  plain,  with 
no  limits, —  gray  and  monotonous,  dreary  and  sad  beyond 
belief.  But  I  suppose  it  appears  to  the  person  who  sees  it  for 
the  first  time,  whatever  his  own  temperament  colors  it. ' ' 

When  they  had  gone  some  distance,  ridges  of  rock  began  to 
crop  up  in  the  sketchy  road,  and  deep  ruts  caused  the  car  to 
creak  and  groan  like  a  creature  in  pain.  Far  across  the  plain 
were  more  tents,  several  huddled  together,  the  camels  feeding 
near  looking  like  queer,  strange  turkeys.  *  *  Those  tents, ' ' 
said  Cherif,  the  all-knowing,  **  belong  to  the  tribe,  Arab 
Cheraga.  Before  the  French  came,  it  was  the  ruling  tribe 
around  here.'' 

Now  the  road  ran  down  by  low,  rocky  hills;  still  nothing 
grew  but  the  scrub-grass  and  the  plain  was  below  the  level 
of  the  sea.  At  the  left,  they  saw  a  long  glistening  white  sur- 
face, like  a  lake  of  salt  crystals. 

* '  Is  it  water,  really,  or  a  mirage  ?  ' '  asked  the  Other-one. 

*'  It  is  a  chott,  part  of  the  great  Chott  Melrir.  Monsieur 
and  Madame  do  not  know,  perhaps,  that  there  are  many  in 
the  Desert  between  Biskra  and  Touggourt.  They  are  depres- 
sions in  it,  filled  with  water  Salter  than  the  sea  and  below  its 
level,  generally.  These  often  dry  up  and  leave  this  shiny 
look;  sometimes  they  are  soft  and  move,  then  they  are  dan- 
gerous to  cross.    Once,  long  ago,  a  caravan  was  lost  in  one." 

The  Other-one  looked  at  the  glistening  chott  with  a  shiver. 
It  was  one  more  of  the  mysteries  of  the  Desert !  The  Aures 
chain  had  been  visible  since  the  party  had  begun  their  day's 
journey, —  above  the  eastern  horizon,  like  a  chain  of  opals 
strung  along  it,  deepening  in  color  as  the  sun  rose  higher, 
seeming  a  link  to  the  world  of  life  and  vivid  color,  as  con- 
trasted with  this  wide  plain  of  gray  and  yellow  sand,  dotted 
with  the  dusty  green  of  the  scrub-grass  and  the  terebinth 
bushes.  Now  the  mountains  grew  dimmer  as  the  car  went  on, 
became  only  a  line  of  color,  then  faded  into  the  mist  of  dis- 
tance and  the  Other-one  felt  more  alone  on  the  boundless 

[250] 


TO   TOUGGOURT 

waste.  The  car  droned  on  over  the  road,  which  grew  from 
bad  to  worse,  one  of  the  cylinders  working  irregularly,  trying 
the  patience  of  Adrian  to  the  utmost.  The  sun  blazed  down, 
and  the  heat  was  oppressive,  but  the  air  had  a  delicious  qual- 
ity in  it  that  the  Other-one  could  not  analyze,  something  that 
lifted  her  spirits  and  invigorated  her,  though  it  was  full  of 
heat  rays.  Everything  on  the  wide  plain  showed  up  for 
more  than  its  size.  Now  in  the  distance  a  train  of  camels 
was  visible,  seeming  larger  than  any  seen  before;  they  came 
slowly  on,  with  full  panniers  swaying  up  and  down  as  they 
walked,  some  of  the  animals  being  almost  covered  from  sight 
with  huge  bundles.  Some  wild-looking  men  were  lurching 
around  on  their  backs,  while  others  ran  before,  visibly  much 
excited  when  they  saw  the  car,  which  Adrian  had  stopped  to 
investigate  some  trouble.  The  camels  padded  by,  swaying  off 
as  much  as  possible  to  one  side,  but  they  all  turned  their 
heads  and  looked  with  haughty  scorn  at  the  motor. 

**  They  are  really  '  ships  of  the  Desert,*  **  said  the  Other- 
one,  *  *  but  why  always  so  haughty  and  scornful  ?  They  have 
to  bear  burdens  and  labor  I  Have  they  come  down  from  some 
high  estate  in  the  ancient  times  when  they  were  royal  beasts? 
Tell  us  something  about  them,  Cherif.** 

Cher  if  was  only  too  pleased  to  tell  all  he  knew  of  camels. 
**  These  are  not  really  camels,  Madame,  they  are  what  you 
call  in  English,  dromedaries; — the  camel  has  two  humps;  but 
they  are  all  called  camels,  by  foreigners.  It  is  not  so  strong 
an  animal  as  is  thought,  and  it  can*t  endure  much  cold;  but 
it  is  of  much  use  on  the  Desert,  as  it  can  go  four  or  five  days 
without  water,  and  feeds  on  the  scrub-grass  found  everywhere 
on  it,  and  can  carry  three  or  four  hundred  pounds.  There  is 
the  camel  called  the  mehari.  He  is  the  race-horse  of  the 
plain.  He  can  go  a  hundred  kilometres  a  day,  and  can  do 
longer  without  food  and  water.  The  French  Government  has 
troops  mounted  on  the  mehari  for  the  policing  of  the  Great 
Desert.'' 

*  *  How  old  do  the  camels  live  to  be  ?  ' '  asked  the  Comman- 
der, drawing  near  in  his  interest. 

[  251  ] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

**  They  live  about  twenty  years,  but  are  put  to  work  when 
they  are  but  four  years  old/' 

When  Adrian  had  finished  his  investigations  and  the  Other- 
one  turned  to  climb  into  the  car,  she  noted,  running  in  and 
out  of  the  wiry  grass,  some  small  lizards  nearly  the  color  of 
the  sand,  the  only  live,  wild  things  she  had  so  far  seen  —  not 
a  bird  had  taken  wing  across  the  sky  that  day.  She  thought, 
**  I  am  sure  the  Desert  is  full  of  life,  but  perhaps  one  ought 
to  dwell  here  to  see  and  detect  animal  life  which  must  needs 
be  the  color  of  the  sand  and  scrub/'  Farther  on  a  cloud  of 
locusts  flew  up  from  some  terebinth  bushes.  Cherif  turned 
to  say,  *  *  Those  are  very  good  to  eat,  Madame. ' ' 

**  To  eat!  "  exclaimed  the  Lady,  horrified. 

"  Yes,  Madame,  they  are  caught  in  nets,  boiled  in  salted 
water,  and  dried,  and  are  most  delicious!  I  have  some  for 
my  luncheon,  will  Madame  taste  one?  *' 

The  Lady  shuddered.  "No!  many  thanks.  Now  I  know 
what  John  ate  in  the  wilderness,''  she  said  to  the  Commander. 

**  Wliy  not  buy  a  sack  of  them  to  take  home  and  introduce 
them  next  winter  at  your  dinner-parties,  as  an  Oriental  deli- 
cacy, to  take  the  place  of  the  omnipresent  salted  almonds?  " 
asked  he. 

Now  the  Desert  stretched  away,  away  —  would  they  ever 
reach  any  spot  of  rest,  where  were  the  green  oases,  with  cool 
springs  ? 

'  *  How  long  does  it  take  to  go  from  Biskra  to  Touggourt  on 
camels  1  ' '  asked  the  Other-one  of  the  guide. 

**  It  takes  six  days,  Madame,  if  the  camels  are  strong." 

*  *  And  we  can  go  in  two  in  this  car !  Is  it  not  going  to  rob 
the  Desert  for  us  of  all  its  mystery,  its  wonder,  its  fascina- 
tion?" She  turned  to  the  Commander.  "An  automobile 
makes  the  world  so  small,  so  trivial !  ' ' 

*  *  It  makes  it  greater  and  grander ;  we  cover  large  spaces ; 
it  opens  new  wonders  and  mysteries  for  us  which  we  could 
never  have  seen  without  it,"  said  he. 

Now  the  scrub  was  growing  sparser,  and  the  sand  yellower 
and  invading  everywhere;  dunes  of  it  rose  near,  and  there 

[252] 


A    \<>\l  AD  MoTillOK  AM)  IIKU  BABllOSO.N  TWK  DKSKirr 
ROAD  TO  TOUGGOURT 


A  NOMAD  FAMILY,  iN   THE  DEaEKT: 
ON  THE  ROAD  TO  TOUGGOURT 


THE  KAID  OF  A  VILLAGE  NEAE  MKAIER  POSES  FOE 
HIS  PHOTOGEAPH 


TO   TOUGGOURT 

were  drifts  of  it  spreading  out  like  waves  of  the  sea.  The  car 
began  to  move  slower  and  slower,  as  the  wheels  sank  in  the 
yellow  sand.  *  *  Now,  *  *  cried  Cherif ,  with  sparkling  eyes, 
* '  we  must  spread  down  the  matting  before  the  wheels ! ' ' 

**  Not  with  this  car,  I  think,"  said  Adrian  stoutly,  **  her 
power  will  pull  her  through  almost  any  sand.  *  * 

The  guide  looked  dubious.  The  sand  grew  deeper,  and  the 
car  groaned  and  the  wheels  slipped.  Adrian  cut  out  the 
muffler,  put  the  motor  at  its  mettle,  and  in  few  moments 
the  worst  was  over  and  the  sand  drifted  away  into  the  rocky 
soil  again. 

Now  an  object  became  visible  in  the  distance,  which  re- 
solved itself  into  several  as  the  car  drew  near.  It  was  a  well 
in  the  Desert,  with  a  long  sort  of  trough  in  front  of  it  and  a 
picturesque  and  interesting  group  around  it,  consisting  of  a 
tall  and  angular  old  Bedouin  and  his  probable  family,  who 
had  all  come  apparently  from  some  distant  tent  to  get  their 
day's  supply  of  water.  There  were  four  or  five  women,  more 
or  less  ugly,  and  three  or  four  children,  with  nondescript  gar- 
ments wrapped  around  them;  the  little  boys  with  skullcaps 
drawn  tightly  over  their  ears.  The  women  had  red  and  blue 
cloths  bound  around  them,  and  much  jewellery  of  bracelets, 
necklaces,  and  armlets.  They  had  the  usual  great  loops  of 
wool  and  hair  framing  their  dark  faces,  and  all  the  color  in 
their  dress  seemed  accentuated  in  the  gray  and  dun-colored 
Desert,  giving  the  only  brightness  besides  that  of  the  blue  of 
the  sky.  The  Commander  bestirred  himself  at  once  to  glance 
with  discerning  eye  at  the  bedecked  females,  to  see  if  there 
were  possible  treasures  for  which  to  bargain.  The  Other-one 
pointed  her  kodak  at  the  group,  all  of  whom  had  seemed  in 
no  wise  alarmed.  Now  they  all  set  up  a  cry,  and  the  children 
fled  behind  their  mothers,  who  had  covered  their  own  faces 
with  their  draperies. 

**  Give  them  some  silver  and  persuade  them  to  keep  still, 
Cherif!  "  said  the  Lady.  The  coin  had  a  magical  effect;  they 
all  stood  like  statues,  but  some  with  their  hands  to  their 
mouths,  as  if  they  feared  they  might  scream  in  spite  of  them- 

[253] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

selves.  As  the  guide  was  about  to  hand  the  silver,  manlike, 
to  the  prettiest  of  the  women,  the  gaunt  man  stepped  sud- 
denly to  the  front  and  seized  it,  dropping  it  down  in  the  folds 
of  his  ragged,  dirty  burnous,  a  proceeding  which  the  women 
accepted  without  protest. 

'*  Come!  *'  called  the  Commander,  *'  there  *s  nothing  here 
worth  a  bargaining.  When  are  we  going  to  get  any  luncheon, 
Cherifr' 

The  guide  pointed  ahead  to  a  low  dark  line  on  the  horizon. 

**  My  gentlemans,  there  is  the  oasis  where  we  shall  eat." 

They  now  came  to  a  pool  of  crystal  water,  with  a  palm-tree 
or  two  growing  near  it.  *  *  01;i !  do  get  out,  Cherif ,  and  get 
me  a  drink  of  that  delicious  water,  I  am  dying  of  thirst!  " 
cried  the  Other-one. 

* '  You  cannot  drink  it,  my  lady,  it  is  the  salt  water  of  the 
Desert,"  Cherif  replied. 

The  car  lurched  on  through  ruts.  Ahead  were  mounds  of 
sand  that  glistened  with  bits  of  mica,  as  if  diamond  dust  had 
been  sprinkled  over  them.  It  was  now  past  noon;  the  sun 
poured  down  its  heat;  they  were  weary  with  the  motion  of 
the  car  over  the  ever  rougher  road ;  hungry  and  parched  with 
thirst.  The  Desert  seemed  a  never-ending  plain,  where  was 
no  rest  for  man  or  beast. 

**  What  if  we  were  on  camels!  "  exclaimed  the  Commander. 

**  My  imagination  cannot  compass  it,"  said  the  Lady. 

Now  the  oasis  grew  more  distinct,  and  the  palms  reached 
their  cool,  feathery  fronds  up  into  the  pale  sky.  At  length 
the  car  pulled  up  before  a  long  low  building  of  plastered 
walls  and  a  red  tile  roof.  *'  It  is  the  station  for  the  stage," 
said  Cherif.  On  one  side  were  great  groves  of  palms,  and 
there  was  the  sound  of  trickling  water.  There  were  black 
and  white  sheep  feeding  on  green  grass  the  other  side  of  the 
low  fence  of  dried  palm  branches  at  the  left,  and  a  sense  of 
coolness  and  rest  filled  the  weary  party  of  travellers  with 
content.  Cherif  made  haste  to  descend,  and  pulling  out  the 
plethoric  basket,  carried  it  at  once  under  the  shade  of  the 
palms,  drawing  from  it,  with  an  air  of  a  kindly  magician,  and 

[254] 


TO  TOUGGOURT 

placing  on  a  white  table-cloth  spread  on  the  grass  under  some 
palms,  bountiful  supplies  of  slices  of  pink  ham,  a  plump 
capon,  many  boiled  eggs,  heads  of  succulent  salad,  round 
crusty  rolls,  with  a  jar  of  fresh  butter,  and  heaps  of  juicy 
oranges  and  sugary  dates  and  figs. 

**  Come,  my  gentlemans  and  lady!  it  is  all  ready  '';  and  he 
beamed  upon  them  as  he  pulled  the  cork  of  a  bottle  of  the 
fine  red  wine  of  Algiers,  supplementing  it  with  another  bot- 
tle of  St.  Galmier  water.  Then  he  retired  to  a  distance  to 
munch  his  loaf  of  Arabian  bread  and  his  delicious  locusts 
with  a  look  of  the  most  supreme  content. 

The  pair  ate  their  luncheon  with  a  dreamy  satisfaction  in 
the  unusual  experience.  The  sheep,  at  first,  seemed  to  resent 
the  intrusion  of  unknown  people  into  their  Eden,  but  settled 
back  to  their  feeding,  giving  a  pastoral  touch  to  the  scene 
that  was  most  pleasing.  AVhen  all  was  done  and  Cherif  had 
gathered  up  the  remains  of  the  feast  for  to-morrow  *s  journey, 
the  Lady  went  out  a  moment,  to  look  off  on  the  Desert  from 
the  oasis,  before  they  should  again  set  sail  on  this  great  ocean 
of  sand.  As  she  looked  down  from  the  low  house,  she  ex- 
claimed to  see  hundreds  of  camels  all  huddled  together,  their 
heads  down,  their  backs  free  from  panniers  and  bundles.  She 
had  never  dreamed  there  could  be  so  many  camels  in  the 
world.  **  It  is  a  watering-place  for  the  camels,*'  said  Cherif, 
coming  up.  **  The  caravans  across  the  Desert  always  stop 
here  to  water.'* 

Refreshed,  and  with  their  enthusiasm  renewed,  our  travel- 
lers climbed  into  the  car,  which  was  all  ready.  Never  did  the 
Commander  have  to  complain  of  his  faithful  chauffeur.  His 
lamp  was  always  trimmed  and  ready  for  the  lighting. 

Not  much  farther  on  they  came  to  another  stretch  of  sand, 
where  the  poor  car  halted  and  trembled,  and  Cherif  was 
ready  to  spring  out  and  unroll  the  matting.  The  sand  dunes 
rose  like  great  petrified  ocean  waves.  Again  they  cleared  all 
and  came  upon  the  rocky,  rutty  road.  It  almost  seemed  that 
Cherif  was  sad  when  he  met  the  chauffeur's  triumphant  gaze, 
but  the  Commander  rejoiced  exceedingly.    Now  another  chott 

[255] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

spread  its  glistening  surface  before  them  and  the  road  wound 
through  it,  to  the  Other-one's  terror;  so  the  afternoon  wore 
on.  The  silence,  but  for  the  whining  and  creaking  of  the 
motor,  would  have  been  almost  intolerable.  Natives  came  and 
passed,  riding  on  feeble  little  donkeys,  or  lurching  on  camel? 
that  seemed  as  tall  as  trees.  Now  the  car  slowly  passed  a 
group  that  called  for  the  Other-one 's  camera :  a  dark-skinned 
old  nomad,  with  tufts  of  gray  whiskers,  glowered  at  them 
from  his  swathing  of  dirty  white  burnous.  Two  pretty  young 
women  hovered  near  him,  and  not  far  off  a  camel  browsed  on 
the  scrub,'  having  on  his  back  a  great  open  basket,  in  which 
were  two  tiny  brown  children,  who  looked  at  the  car  with 
great  scared  eyes.  The  man  seemed  savage  enough  when  the 
kodak  was  pointed  at  them,  but  the  silver  coin  waved  before 
him  reduced  him  to  quiet. 

Late  in  the  afternoon,  a  long  dark  line  showed  against  the 
horizon,  and  later,  many  palm-trees  became  visible. 

**  Is  it  a  mirage?  ''  asked  the  weary  Lady. 

*  *  No !  we  shall  see  none  to-day ;  to-morrow  perhaps, ' '  said 
Cherif. 

' '  We  must !  To  cross  the  Desert  and  have  no  mirage 
would  not  be  to  see  the  Desert  about  which  we  have  read !  ' ' 

**  That  is  the  oasis  of  Mraier,  where  there  are  one  hundred 
and  twenty-five  thousand  date-palms  watered  by  many  arte- 
sian wells.  There  is  a  caravansary  where  we  stop  for  the 
night,  and  Madame  can  be  very  comfortable,"  answered  the 
guide.    Madame  looked  doubtful. 

**  Tell  us  all  you  can  now,  before  we  arrive,  about  the  date- 
palm  and  its  culture,"  said  the  Commander. 

**  I  cannot  tell  my  gentlemans  so  very  much.  It  is  better 
he  waits  until  we  get  to  Mraier ;  a  monsieur  will  be  there  for 
the  night,  I  have  learned,  who  can  tell  everything  my  gentle- 
mans wished  to  know  about  date-palms.  He  is  one  of  the 
managers  of  the  great  Company  of  the  Oued  Eir,  and  he  now 
visits  the  plantations  around." 

The  palms  were  black  against  the  sky,  which  was  stained 
like  a  pomegranate  with  the  afterglow  of  the  sunset,  when 

[  256  ] 


TO   TOUGGOURT 

the  car  came  up  before  the  great  gate  set  in  the  high  plastered 
walls  around  the  caravansary  of  Mraier.  Several  natives, 
wrapped  in  their  burnouses  were  seated  leaning  against  the 
walls.  They  arose  quickly  and  followed  the  car  as  it  rolled 
into  the  courtyard,  around  which  ran  the  low  building  with 
windows  and  doors  opening  into  the  various  rooms,  on  two 
sides,  the  other  taken  up  with  the  stables  for  the  stage  and 
horses. 

It  was  a  sore  and  weary  pair  that  alighted  from  the  car, 
and  the  Lady  cast  looks  of  apprehension  around  the  primitive 
and  bare  looking  place.  The  stolid  Belgian  landlord  came 
quietly  to  welcome  them,  and  showed  them  to  their  room.  It 
was  like  a  cell  of  a  monk,  bare  and  whitewashed,  with  a  brick 
floor  and  two  iron  beds,  a  wash-stand  and  chair  for  furniture, 
but  there  was  a  big  jug  of  water,  and  the  towels  were  plenty 
though  coarse.  **  Thank  heaven!  it  *s  clean  enough,^*  ex- 
claimed the  Other-one,  **  and  that  is  all  I  ask.** 

It  was  not  long  before  they  were  called  to  dinner,  and  they 
crossed  the  small  courtyard  to  the  little  dining-room  in  the 
corner,  where  was  a  table  spread  with  a  coarse  white  cloth 
and  laid  for  six.  At  it,  already  seated,  were  a  thin,  dark,  in- 
telligent-looking man  and  a  plump  little  woman  of  the  bour- 
geoisie type,  presumably  his  wife.  She  regarded  the  Lady 
curiously,  taking  in  at  a  glance  her  simple,  dark  travelling 
dress,  and  then  looked  down  complacently  over  her  own  light- 
blue  embroidered  gown,  just  new,  probably  from  Algiers,  and 
the  heavy  gold  watch  chain  draped  across  the  waist.  The 
man,  with  the  surface  politeness  of  the  French,  arose  and 
bowed  deeply  to  the  newcomers.  Then  a  sad-faced  woman 
brought  in  a  thick  soup  and  afterwards  some  rather  tough 
boiled  mutton  with  potatoes  and  some  small  leaves  of  lettuce, 
served  with  much  oil  for  dressing.  The  Frenchman  with  a 
pleased  surprise  regarded  the  salad,  rather  a  scarce  thing 
here,  undoubtedly,  and  at  once,  with  what  is  often  a  French 
disregard  for  the  essentials  of  politeness,  helped  himself  to, 
at  least,  three-quarters  of  it. 

*  *  Why  did  n  *t  he  take  it  all  ?    Pity  to  leave  so  little  alone !  ' ' 

[  257  ] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

exclaimed  the  Commander.  '*  But  never  mind,  he  has  bowed 
most  politely  to  us,  and  what  more  can  one  expect  from  such 
a  Frenchman?  Now  begin  to  ply  him  with  questions  about 
the  date  culture.  He  must  be  the  manager  of  whom  Cherif 
spoke,  and  looks  very  intelligent.'' 

So  the  Lady,  prompted  by  the  Commander,  drew  forth  from 
him  in  instalments,  and  translated  as  well  as  she  was  able, 
the  following: 

It  was  some  years  ago,  that  a  company  of  French  gentle- 
men, much  interested  in  the  development  of  the  country,  con- 
ceived the  idea  of  installing  a  series  of  artesian  wells  to 
increase,  by  improved  irrigation,  the  production  of  some  of  the 
oases  already  in  cultivation,  and  form  new  plantations  for 
systematic  cultivation.  On  the  oases  the  water  is  distributed 
in  little  canals,  often  only  a  few  inches  in  depth  and  width, 
which  wind  through  the  gardens  and  around  the  roots  of  the 
palms,  so  as  to  have  that  condition  under  which  alone, 
the  Arab  proverb  says,  can  the  date  flourish  —  * '  its  feet 
in  the  water  and  its  head  in  the  fires  of  heaven. '  *  The  artesian 
wells  sunk  by  the  French  engineers  naturally  require  little 
attention  when  once  the  flow  of  water  is  established ;  but  with 
the  Arab  wells  it  is  quite  another  affair;  with  a  mouth  at 
least  a  yard  square,  and  the  sides  shored  up  in  a  primitive 
fashion,  they  become  frequently  choked  with  sand  and  debris ; 
then  the  Arab  owning  such  a  well  sends  for  divers.  *'  These 
are  the  Rouaras,  whose  villages  Monsieur  will  pass  to-mor- 
row." They  form  a  class  apart,  almost  a  religious  sect,  and 
they  have  prayers  and  special  charms  before  descending  into 
a  well.  This  company  of  French  gentlemen  is  called  the 
Company  of  the  Oued  Rir.  The  region  is  the  country  of  the 
finest  and  best  dates  consumed  in  Europe.  They  are  called 
degla.  There  are  six  hundred  and  fifty  thousand  date-palms 
and  many  artesian  wells  in  this  date  country  of  Oued  Rir, 
which  is  a  basin  where  the  valleys  of  the  two  Saharan  rivers, 
the  Oued  Igarghur  and  the  Oued  Mya,  meet  at  a  very  low 
level;  and  to  this  circumstance  is  due  the  quantity  of  water 
for  artesian  wells  which  assures  abundant  irrigation. 

[258] 


TO   TOUGGOURT 

Also  he  told  them  that  this  date-palm  (Phoenix  dactylifera) 
can  be  cultivated  only  in  or  near  the  Sahara  Desert.  It  will 
not  ripen  north  of  the  thirty-third  parallel  of  latitude.  With- 
out it  no  one  could  live  here.  The  Arabs  adore  this  tree. 
It  grows  in  the  desert  soil  and  contents  itself  with  water  so 
saline  that  it  would  destroy  ordinary  vegetation,  and  casts 
a  grateful  shade  in  summer,  when  all  else  is  burnt  up.  It 
gives  a  fruit  of  value  to  the  world,  and  which  can  be  ex- 
changed for  other  things  of  which  the  Arab  may  have  need. 
The  male  tree  bears  no  fruit.  It  has  merely  a  bunch  of 
flowers  inclosed  in  a  spathe  until  maturity.  The  bunches  of 
flowers  of  the  female  cannot  develop  into  fruit  until 
fecundated  by  the  male.  To  assure  this  the  Arabs  ascend  the 
tree  in  the  month  of  April  and  insert  in  the  spathe  of  the 
female  flower,  a  portion  of  the  pollen  of  the  male  flower.  The 
fruit  begins  to  swell  and  forms  long  clusters  weighing  from 
twenty  to  forty  pounds,  each  tree  producing  about  two  hun- 
dred pounds  in  a  season.  To  multiply  the  date-palm,  the 
Arabs  do  not  sow  seed,  as  they  then  could  not  be  sure  of  the 
sex  of  the  trees,  but  they  plant  the  suckers  from  the  base 
of  the  female  tree  (whence  the  name  Phoenix),  These 
become  productive  in  about  eight  years,  but  do  not  come  to 
full  fruition  under  twenty  or  twenty-five.  The  trees  will 
live  two  hundred  years,  but  are  not  worth  preserving  after  a 
century.  The  wood,  though  inferior  in  quality,  is  valuable 
here  because  there  is  no  other  kind.  The  roots  are  used  for 
fencing  and  roofing,  and  the  leaves  are  made  into  mats, 
baskets,  sacks,  and  cord.  The  trees  flower  in  March  and 
April;  the  fruit  ripens  about  October. 

It  seemed  there  was  nothing  more  to  learn  concerning  the 
date-palm,  and  our  party  were  about  to  arise  and  bid  the 
intelligent  manager  good-night,  when  a  rattling  and  a  jing- 
ling invaded  the  quiet  room.  The  learned  Frenchman  had 
ceased  talking  in  his  low.  even  voice,  and  was  taking  long 
draughts  of  the  red  wine,  a  bottle  or  two  of  which  was  on 
the  table.  Hoarse  voices  called  out,  and  our  party  rushed 
to  the  door  to  see  what  had  happened.     It  was  the  nonde- 

[259] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

script  stage  which  had  arrived;  from  this,  dusty  and  weary 
travellers  were  alighting,  while  Arabs  hastened  to  unhitch 
the  tired  horses. 

That  night,  the  Other-one  awoke  from  her  first  sound  sleep 
in  her  little  cell  of  a  room,  to  silence  unlike  anything  she  had 
ever  experienced.  It  seemed  as  if  the  Great  Desert,  stretch- 
ing away  to  its  illimitable  bounds,  breathed  upon  all  things 
within  it,  hushing  them  to  silence.  ''It  is  like  that  of  infin- 
ite space,''  she  thought. 

At  three  o'clock  she  was  again  awakened  by  the  crashing 
and  jingling  and  creaking  of  the  stage,  and  the  hoarse  calls 
of  the  driver,  as  all  rolled  out  of  the  courtyard  and  away. 
*'  Oh,  pity  the  poor  wretches  that  have  to  be  bounced  and 
bumped  over  that  road  this  morning!  Give  me,  forever,  an 
automobile,"  mumbled  the  sleepy  Commander. 

The  next  morning  they  were  served  with  some  strong  hot 
coffee,  but  without  milk,  to  the  Other-one's  regret,  at  an  hour 
which  seemed  late  compared  with  that  at  which  the  rattling 
stage  had  departed,  and  they  were  soon  on  the  road,  with  a 
clear  pale  sky  above  them  and  the  sand  rolling  away  in  bil- 
lows, gray  and  yellow,  before  them.  The  oasis  of  Mraier  be- 
came a  dark  line  on  the  horizon,  then  faded  from  view.  When 
an  hour  or  more  had  passed,  the  outline  of  another  oasis  was 
visible  but  with  sparse  palm-trees.  A  village  soon  showed  it- 
self, with  long  low  walls  and  houses  of  sun-dried  brick,  much 
like  the  fashion  of  the  pueblos  of  New  Mexico.  A  few  of  the 
natives,  the  boys  half  clad,  ran  out  to  view  the  strange  object, 
while  the  Other-one  snapped  the  town  with  her  kodak. 

' '  This  is  a  village  of  the  Rouaras  —  El  Amri ' ' —  said 
Cherif.  "After  luncheon  we  shall  stop  at  one  village  that 
my  lady  may  see  how  they  live.  They  are  the  people  who 
work  much  on  the  date  plantations,  and  they  mix  so  much 
with  negroes  that  they  are  nearly  black  themselves.  They  are 
a  hard-working  people  and  can  weave  cloth  and  fine  rugs. ' ' 

The  road  grew  steadily  worse.  Now  some  great  hills  of 
sand  rose  on  both  sides,  which  Cherif  said  were  called  El 
Biban    or  the  gates  to  Touggourt.    Beyond,  the  sand  spread 

r  260  1 


TO  TOUGGOURT 

out  everywhere,  and  the  tufts  of  grass  were  sparse.  It  had 
been  an  hour  and  the  silence,  but  for  the  creaking  car,  was  op- 
pressive to  the  Other-one.  No  one  in  the  party"  seemed  to 
wish  to  speak  but  Cherif,  who  gave  out  such  bits  of  informa- 
tion as  he  felt  needful  for  his  ' '  gentlemans  *  *  and  lady.  It 
seemed  to  her  that  they  had  been  travelling  for  days,  and 
that  days  must  go  on  before  they  could  compass  this  un- 
fathomable Desert.  Nothing  had  been  in  sight  for  a  long 
time,  when  they  perceived,  moving  in  the  distance, 
a  small  company  of  men  on  horseback  and  on  camels,  led  by 
a  gallant  figure  on  a  beautiful  Arabian  horse.  **  It  is  the 
Commandant  of  the  Department,**  said  Cherif,  **  who  is  go- 
ing on  a  tour  of  inspection  with  his  men.**  The  officer  wore  a 
soft  felt  hat  bound  round  with  a  white  ha'ik,  which  fell  upon 
his  shoulders  in  snowy  folds.  A  pair  of  keen  blue  eyes  looked 
out  from  his  strong  bronzed  face.  He  sat  easily  and  erect  in 
the  saddle,  bowing  with  most  courtly  grace  as  the  party  came 
up  to  the  car.  The  camels  the  men  rode  seemed  of  a  most 
superior  and  well-cared-for  kind,  as  different  from  the  poor, 
moth-eaten-looking  beasts  the  travellers  had  before  encoun- 
tered on  the  desert,  as  a  well  groomed  horse  is  from  a  sorry, 
neglected  donkey.  It  was  all  a  vision  of  delight,  and,  as  they 
passed  from  sight,  the  Desert  seemed  brighter  for  the 
encounter. 

Now  another  pull  through  deep  sand,  conquered  by  the 
strong  and  powerful  car,  to  the  growing  wonder  of  Cherif. 
**  But  to-morrow  you  will  see,  the  matting,  it  must  be  used.** 

But  the  car  now  began  to  grow  sulky,  and  the  engine  heated 
up  to  such  an  extent  that  the  chauffeur  said  they  must  fill  up 
the  radiator  with  water.  Fortunately,  Cherif  knew  of  a  small 
well  not  far  off,  so  he  ran  with  the  bucket  to  bring  consola- 
tion to  the  thirsty  motor.  As  the  Lady  waited,  having  stepped 
out  of  the  car,  she  saw  for  the  first  time,  a  bird  winging  his 
way  across  the  sky,  low  down ;  and  then,  close  by,  she  saw  also, 
pushing  hardily  up  through  the  sand,  some  round  thick  stems 
covered  with  small  lavender  and  white  flowers  —  succulent 
looking  stems  that  guarded  juices  within  to  withstand  the 

[261] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

desert  heat  and  bring  their  offspring  to  maturity.  They  were 
the  only  flowering  things  she  had  seen  and  they  seemed  to 
nod  at  her  with  stanch  and  friendly  eyes. 

'  *  What  are  they  ?  ' '  she  asked  Cherif ,  but  he,  though  wise 
in  lore  of  travels  on  the  Desert,  knew  neither  flower  nor  bird, 
in  French  or  English. 

They  were  off  again,  moving  slowly,  bouncing  over  the 
rocky  ridges,  crawling  through  the  sand.  They  came  up 
with,  and  passed,  a  spruce  wagonette,  in  which  were  the 
French  manager  with  his  buxom  wife  squeezed  in  by  his  side, 
her  hat  gay  with  red  roses  and  a  long  plume.  They  were 
bouncing  over  the  rough  road,  but  seemed  content.  ''  They 
must  have  left  early  this  morning.  I  hope  he  is  going  where 
he  can  have  plenty  of  salad !  ' '  exclaimed  the  Commander. 

Now  the  long  walls  of  a  village  came  in  sight,  with  a  few 
palms  showing  above  them.  A  crowd  of  boys  and  girls  all 
nearly  as  black  as  the  ace  of  spades,  with  great  water  jars  on 
their  backs,  rushed  out  from  the  gates  and  came  running  to- 
ward the  car.  Some  women,  gay  in  red  and  yellow,  lingered 
behind. 

"  It  is  a  village  of  the  Rouaras,  also,"  said  Cherif.  **  Will 
my  lady  and  gentlemans  descend  to  look  at  it?  " 

**  We  might  go  through  for  a  few  moments,  but  we  have  to 
reach  Touggourt  early,  you  know,  to  see  anything  of  it. ' ' 

So  Cherif  led  his  people  up  through  the  gates  and  into  the 
town  through  the  narrow  lanes.  But  it  was  a  deserted  town, 
and  the  low,  mud-plastered  houses  all  looked  new.  The  only 
inhabitants  were,  seemingly,  the  few  children  and  women 
who  had  rushed  out  to  the  car  and  still  remained  by  it. 

**  This  is  a  strange  place!"  exclaimed  the  Commander. 
**  Is  everybody  dead?  " 

Cherif  himself  was  puzzled.  He  questioned  a  small  boy 
who  trailed  after  the  party.  **  He  says  that  this  is  a  new 
village  which  has  been  built  lately  by  the  Commandant  of  the 
Bureau  des  Affaires  Indigenes,  and  the  people  of  a  village 
near,  where  the  fever  broke  out,  are  to  move  here.  A  few 
women  and  children  are  here  now  for  a  guard." 

[  262  ] 


TO   TOUGGOURT 

It  was  a  little  after  noon,  when  the  car  stopped  under  the 
grateful  shade  of  some  palm-trees  in  one  of  the  greatest  and 
most  luxuriant  oases  the  travellers  had  yet  seen.  The  road 
stretched  on  white  but  flecked  with  shade  from  the  fine  trees 
bordering  it  on  either  side. 

Cherif  came  to  the  front  and  spread  the  lunch  for  his  peo- 
ple under  some  splendid  palms,  while,  as  if  sprung  from  the 
earth,  there  appeared,  but  keeping  at  a  respectful  distance, 
some  men  and  small  boys  clad  in  long  white  garments,  and 
some  with  white  burnouses.  They  had  gentle  black  faces, 
**  They  are  some  of  the  people  who  work  in  the  date  planta- 
tions," Cherif  said. 

When  the  lunch  was  ended,  the  Other-one  offered  the  re- 
mains of  the  feast  to  these  people,  who  came  respectfully 
near,  eagerly  took  it  and  ate,  with  much  apparent  satisfac- 
tion, the  white  rolls  and  picked  at  the  chicken  bones.  One 
jet-black,  gaunt  fellow,  who  seemed  much  pleased  and  inter- 
ested in  everything,  came  to  offer  a  boiled  egg  which  had 
fallen  to  the  ground,  to  the  Commander,  and  to  gaze  at 
the  Lady's  kodak  with  so  much  curiosity  that  she  was  moved 
to  ask  his  name. 

**  It  is  Abd-el-Kader  and  he  lives  near  by  in  a  gourhV* 

**  Then  he  is  named  after  the  great  Abd-el-Kader,  who  gave 
the  French  so  much  trouble  and  who  preached  the  holy  war. 
I  hope  his  namesake  has  not  his  fierce  characteristics!  **  said 
the  Other-one. 

But  this  poor  native  seemed  the  most  simple  and  gentle  of 
beings,  so  much  so  that  the  Lady  felt  her  sympathy  quite  go 
out  to  him.  **  Let  us  give  him  a  little  ride!  *'  she  exclaimed. 
When  Abd-el-Kader  was  made  by  Cherif  to  understand  his 
good  fortune,  he  smiled  with  delight,  though  he  seemed  to 
have  some  misgivings  when  once  seated  on  the  side  of  the  car. 
This  moved  slowly  off,  leaving  the  other  natives  a  prey  to  the 
most  melancholy  apprehensions,  evidently.  When  the  Com- 
mander thought  that  he  had  taken  Abd-el-Kader  far  enough, 
he  stopped  to  let  him  leap  down,  which  he  did  with  evident 
relief,  but,  to  show  his  lively  gratitude  for  his  ride,  would 

[263] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

have  pressed  kisses  on  the  hands  of  the  Commander  and  the 
Lady,  had  not  previous  osculatory  experiences  taught  them  to 
ward  off  tactfully  such  manifestations.  "  Poor  son  of  the 
Desert !  ' '  exclaimed  the  Other-one.  * '  It  is  the  event  of  his 
life,  this  ride  in  a  motor  car.  He  will  relate  it  to  his  children 
and  grandchildren  as  something  marvellous.*' 

As  the  road  went  on,  they  came  at  last  to  Cherif 's  greatest 
bugbear,  a  place  where  the  heavy  wheels  of  the  car  sunk 
down  in  the  soft  sand.  **  Now,'*  he  cried  joyfully,  "  we 
must  unroll  the  matting  ' ' ;  and  he  leaped  out  to  climb  up 
and  pull  it  from  the  roof  of  the  canopy.  Adrian  put  on  all 
the  power ;  the  car  seemed  to  stop. 

**  Will  Monsieur  and  Madame  please  get  out,  it  will  lighten 
the  car,'*  he  said. 

So  the  two  descended  ankle  deep  in  the  sand  and  struggled 
through  it  as  best  they  could.  Another  pull,  and,  behold! 
the  car  moved  slowly,  very  slowly,  and  then  came  up  tri- 
umphantly on  the  harder  road. 

*  *  It 's  magnificent ! ' '  declared  Cherif  wonderingly. 

On  the  car  went  now,  all  rejoicing,  as  the  guide  said  the 
worst  was  over.  Then  appeared  a  cloud  on  the  horizon,  which 
grew  denser  as  they  approached,  and  it  proved  to  be  a  multi- 
tude of  camels,  unburdened,  seemingly  an  army  of  the  Desert 
coming  on,  perhaps  to  wreck  this  audacious  car  which  dared 
to  invade  their  sacred  precincts.  However,  they  came  on  and 
padded  by  on  their  great  feet,  all  swaying  off  far  to  the  right 
as  they  came  nearer.  Trailing  after  the  drivers  of  this  great 
great  herd  of  camels,  came  several  women  in  dark  blue 
dresses  caught  up  on  their  breasts  with  huge  silver  pins. 
Their  heads  were  bound  in  red  and  yellow  cloths.  They 
stopped  to  stare  stupidly  at  the  unusual  appearance  of  the 
car  and  made  a  picturesque  sight  as  they  ranged  themselves 
in  a  row.  The  Other-one  at  once  jumped  out  and  pointed  the 
kodak  at  them,  but  they  stared  on,  apparently  unalarmed, 
like  half-tamed,  wild  animals. 

The  scrub  now  became  more  abundant,  and  some  stout  little 
plants  with  racemes  of  blue  and  lavender  flowers  pushed 

[264] 


TO  TOUGGOURT 

hardily  up  through  the  sand.  It  was  not  later  than  four 
o'clock,  when  the  outline  of  the  great  oasis  of  one  hundred 
and  seventy  thousand  palms  appeared,  a  great  mass,  above 
the  horizon. 

**  There  is  Touggourt!  *'  exclaimed  Cherif. 

**  Are  we  really  so  near!  It  has  not  seemed  long  to-day, *' 
said  the  Commander. 

The  road  improved  now,  and  the  car  moved  on  more 
rapidly,  while  the  palm-trees,  the  white  domes  and  minarets 
of  Touggourt  rose  as  if  by  magic  out  of  the  Desert,  and  soon 
our  travellers  were  rolling  down  by  walls  stuck  full  of  palm 
branches,  by  low  white  buildings,  and  crowds  of  Arabs,  all 
white  too,  except  their  legs  and  faces;  and  Adrian  stopped, 
at  a  gesture  from  Cherif,  before  a  long,  white,  arcaded  build- 
ing with  a  sign  of  the  *  *  Hotel  de  1  'Oasis  * '  upon  it. 

At  once  a  crowd  of  natives  packed  solidly  around  the 
motor.  There  was  a  hoarse  cry,  and  a  stout,  red-faced  man 
in  shirt  sleeves  pushed  and  struggled  his  way  through  them, 
and  cried  out : 

**  Welcome!  Monsieur,  welcome  to  Touggourt!  but  alas! 
alas !  I  am  covered  with  remorse !  I  have  been  obliged  to  give 
up  all  my  fine  rooms  to  some  German  and  English  who  tele- 
graphed before  Monsieur:  alas!  but  all  is  now  arranged; 
Madame  and  Monsieur  will  have  so  fine  rooms,  so  clean,  so 
desirable,  in  the  annex,  with  such  dinners  here,  all,  at  the 
hotel.  *' 

**  In  the  annex!"  exclaimed  the  Commander  wrath  fully, 
when  he  was  told  this.  **  I  suppose  that  will  prove  to  be  some 
Arab  hut.    Let  us  go  to  another  hotel,  at  once,  Cherif.'* 

**  But,  my  gentlemans,  this  is  all  the  hotel  there  is  here,  we 
can  go  to  no  other. ' ' 

**  Very  well,  .then,  we  will  stop  at  this  one,"  returned  **  the 
gentlemans,"  resigning  himself  to  the  inevitable,  with  that 
quickness  characteristic  of  him. 

So  they  went  in  the  direction  pointed  out  by  Cherif,  ac- 
companied by  all  the  natives,  so  that  the  car  seemed  to  move 
by  no  power  of  its  own,  but  to  be  propelled  by  them  to  the 

[265] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

stopping  place.  The  annex  proved  to  be  a  smaller  edition  of 
the  hotel,  whitewashed  and  arcaded.  Many  of  the  natives 
wished  to  assist  in  removing  the  baggage  from  the  car,  but 
Cherif  pushed  them  all  aside  in  favor  of  a  black  boy  with  a 
scarlet  fez,  who  ran  out  and  seized  everything  with  a  beam- 
ing face,  then  led  the  way  up  a  flight  of  stairs  to  a  sort  of  hut 
built  on  the  flat  roof  of  the  long  veranda.  Here  the  travel- 
lers found  a  clean  little  room,  with  the  usual  iron  beds.  Some 
gay  rugs  and  three  or  four  vases  of  dusty  artificial  flowers 
gave  this  a  rather  festive  look,  while  from  the  open  door  and 
the  one  casement  window,  they  could  see  white  domes 
and  minarets,  green  palm-trees,  vivid  blue  sky,  and  the  sun- 
shine flooding  all  with  a  radiance  unknown  in  the  cold  north- 
ern clime  from  which  the  Motorists  had  come. 

After  they  had  removed  the  sand  and  dust  from  their 
clothes  and  faces,  the  Commander  proposed  that  they  should 
go  out,  as  it  was  not  yet  late,  and  see  as  much  of  the  town  as 
possible. 

They  found  the  city  situated  upon  a  low  hill,  which  they 
had  not  realized  upon  approaching  it.  The  place  was  billow- 
ing with  white,  cream,  and  coffee-colored  burnouses  every- 
where, which,  with  the  long  white  building,  in  fanciful  Moor- 
ish style,  of  the  Bureau  des  Affaires  Indigenes,  the  massive 
square  towers  of  the  kasba, —  all  showing  against  a  back- 
ground of  hundreds  of  palm-trees  with  their  green  fronds  — 
made  a  most  fascinating  picture.  Cherif  told  his  people 
there  was  to  be  a  fair  the  next  day,  to  which  crowds  came, 
some  from  the  wild  tribes  also,  down  on  the  Desert.  He  took 
them  to  the  market-place,  which  is  a  great  square  some  dis- 
tance from  the  Hotel  de  I'Oasis.  Here  were  seething  masses 
of  natives  making  preparation  for  the  great  event  of  the 
morrow.  The  men  of  the  wild  tribes  were  arriving  on  camels, 
also  laden  with  merchandise  —  the  Touaregs,  the  Eouaras, 
and  others  of  the  primitive  Berbers,  with  their  characteristic 
dress ;  sheep  and  goats  were  being  driven  in,  with  accompany- 
ing braying  donkeys,  bestrode  by  natives.  Many  of  the 
families  were  making  preparations  for  the  night,  spreading 

[266] 


TO  TOUGGOURT 

down  rugs,  or  building  little  charcoal  fires  to  cook  the  even- 
ing meal.  Some  were  already  supping,  squatting  down  in  the 
sand  around  a  smoking  pot  of,  presumably,  cous-cous,  in 
which  the  men,  women,  and  children  dipped  pieces  of  the 
Arab  bread  or  their  fingers,  indiscriminately.  Others  were 
arranging  piles  of  their  merchandise  —  dried  corn,  beans, 
vegetables,  piles  of  dates,  heaps  of  oranges,  henna  for  the 
Arab  woman  *s  toilette,  and  the  thousand  and  one  other  things 
sold  in  an  Oriental  fair.  The  place  was  full  of  movement, 
bustle,  excitement,  and  there  was  the  babble  of  voices,  the 
noise  of  the  animals.  The  odor  of  the  cooking  arose  and  a 
filmy  haze  of  smoke  hung  over  all.  The  people,  intent  on 
what  they  were  doing,  paid  little  attention  to  the  strangers 
in  their  midst,  even  the  small  children  did  not  run  to  cry  for 
sous,  as  is  the  habit  in  less  unspoiled  places.  Here,  under  a 
palm-tree,  sat  a  turbaned  old  man,  who  was  a  story-teller, 
Cherif  said.  A  little  group  was  gathered  around  him,  listen- 
ing with  evident  delight,  to  what  he  related  in  a  high  sing- 
song tone,  rocking  himself  back  and  forth.  In  many  places, 
men  had  spread  their  rugs  for  prayer  and  were  going  through 
their  devotions  as  unconcerned  with  the  tumult  and  crowd 
around  them  as  they  would  have  been  in  their  mosques  or 
alone  in  some  wilderness. 

**  What  a  strong  religion  it  must  be  to  absorb  its  believers 
so,  here  in  the  midst  of  noise  and  confusion,  *  *  said  the  Other- 
one,  **  and  it  is  a  religion  certainly  suited  to  their  indolent, 
sensual  natures  and  half-smothered  ferocious  instincts.'* 

Cherif  now  asked  if  they  would  not  wish  to  see  something 
of  the  native  town,  so  they  left  the  fascinating  kaleidoscopic 
movements  of  the  crowd  in  the  great  square  and  went  up  the 
street,  by  the  long,  white,  arcaded  buildings  and,  turning  in 
under  one  of  the  arcades,  came  to  a  long  partly  covered 
gallery  under  which  was  a  gloom  somewhat  like  twilight.  It 
was  probably  so  built  to  protect  those  who  walked  there  from 
the  intense  rays  of  the  sun  in  the  great  heat  of  summer.  The 
houses  were  mostly  built,  like  all  those  in  the  Oued  Rir,  of 
sun-dried-mud  bricks,  though  those  of  the  richer  natives  were 

[267] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

of  rubble,  plastered  over.  There  were  numerous  partition  walls 
under  the  galleries,  and  many  bays  where  long  seats  were 
attached.  On  these  lounged  natives,  smoking,  and  many 
small  children  played  around  them.  There  were  shops,  mere 
holes  in  the  walls,  but  many  of  these  had  the  shutters  up ;  their 
owners  probably  off  with  the  crowds  in  the  square  of  the  fair. 
Women,  some  wrapped  in  white  mantles,  others  with  their 
faces  bare,  and  clinking  jewellery,  scuttled  by,  as  if  trying  to 
escape  all  notice.  There  was  no  brightness  of  color  anywhere 
except  in  the  gowns  of  the  children.  The  weary  travellers 
trailed  along  after  the  guide,  and  finally  came  to  the  Grand 
Mosque,  which  has  no  elegance  of  style.  Even  the  minaret  is 
but  a  roughly  built  tower. 

* '  Will  my  lady  and  gentlemans  climb  to  the  top  ?  There 
are  very  few  steps  and  the  view  is  superb, '^  said  Cherif. 
After  some  demur  from  the  Commander,  they  followed  an 
ancient  guardian  up  the  narrow  flight  of  stairs  and  were 
rewarded  by  a  glorious  view  over  the  green  oasis  of  one  hun- 
dred and  seventy  thousand  palms,  to  the  great  Desert,  spread- 
ing its  masses  of  sand  away  to  the  south.  The  sun  was  now 
dropping  low  in  the  west,  all  the  white  buildings  were  flushed 
with  pink,  and  the  reflections  in  the  rills  of  water  showed 
distinctly. 

*  *  Oh !  let  us  hasten  and  walk  down  below  the  village  to  the 
sand  of  the  real  Desert,  beyond  those  palms.  We  can  see  a 
sunset  on  the  Desert ;  it  will  be  glorious. ' ' 

*  *  Are  you  not  satisfied  with  all  we  have  done  to-day  ?  As 
for  me,  I  am  so  weary  I  can  scarcely  walk  to  the  hotel.  All 
the  rolling  and  bumping  of  the  car  on  the  awful  road;  the 
constant  looking  from  side  to  side  to  view  everything  we 
passed  —  has  reduced  me  to  the  most  apathetic  state.  Noth- 
ing seems  to  me  now  so  desirable,  after  my  dinner,  as  my  bed. 
The  most  beautiful  sunset  in  the  world  would  have  no  charms 
for  me  now !  ' ' 

**  Very  well!  *'  answered  the  Other-one.  **  This  is  where 
my  perfect  health  comes  to  my  aid;  I  will  go  down  with 
Cherif,  if  you  have  no  objection.*' 

[  268  ] 


TO   TOUGGOURT 

The  Commander  took  his  weary  way  to  the  seclusion  of  the 
annex,  while  the  Lady  walked  rapidly  away  with  Cherif, 
down  across  the  square  and  away  from  the  larger  square 
where  the  preparations  for  to-morrow's  fair  were  going  on. 
They  passed  the  fine  Moorish  building  of  the  Bureau  des 
Affaires  Indigenes,  with  its  row  of  graceful  pepper-trees  in 
front ;  past  the  fountain,  near  which  were  some  small  natives 
sprawling  in  the  sand,  greedily  eating  their  supper.  As  the 
Lady  drew  near,  she  glanced  to  see  what  this  might  consist  of 
and  discovered  that  all  they  each  had  was  a  great  handful  of 
the  dried  locusts,  which  they  were  eating  with  the  greatest 
gusto,  while  a  great  heap  of  legs  and  wings  lay  on  the  ground 
before  each  boy.  The  road  straggled  away  down  to  where 
the  sand-dunes  arose,  and,  after  some  walking,  one  could  see, 
stretching  to  the  horizon  line,  an  ocean  of  yellow  sand.  The 
houses  and  the  palm-trees  were  left  behind ;  only  a  stray  tree 
or  two  could  be  seen  here  and  there,  as  if  they  had  wandered 
away  from  the  great  plantations  and  were  lost  ir  the  billows 
of  sand.  The  noise  from  the  village  came  faintly  on  the  air. 
The  low  tents  of  the  nomads  cropped  up  here  and  there,  like 
strange  plants  growing  in  the  sand ;  a  straight  line  of  smoke 
arose  from  them  in  the  motionless  hot  air.  Camels  and 
donkeys  were  feeding  near  them,  while  long  trains  of  other 
camels  were  swaying  in  from  the  distance.  There  were 
groups  of  the  nomads  seated  on  the  sand,  gathered  around 
their  evening  meal.  The  Lady  walked  on  silently  over  the 
sand  with  Cherif.  She  had  said  to  him:  *'  Take  me  down 
where  it  is  still,  that  I  may  see  the  sun  set  where  it  is  tranquil 
and  there  is  nothing  to  disturb  me.** 

So  on  they  went  for  some  time,  then  rounded  a  mound  of 
sand  which  shut  away  all  behind  them,  and  she  saw  the  sand 
before  her  surging  away  to  the  sky  line.  The  sun  was  now 
hastening  down  the  west,  and  soon,  a  great  ball  of  fire,  it 
reached  the  horizon  line,  where  it  seemed  to  pause,  as  if  re- 
luctant to  bid  the  earth  good-night,  then  dropped  slowly, 
slowly,  and  was  gone,  leaving  the  sky  stained  a  pale  rose. 
Everything  seemed  to  have  come  to  an  end  for  a  few  mo- 

[269] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

ments.  Then,  suddenly,  the  sky  flamed  up  from  its  rose  tints 
to  a  deep  and  vivid  pomegranate  color,  which  mounted  up 
and  up  to  melt  into  a  soft  green,  then  to  orange,  paling  to 
amber,  and  at  last  fading  away  into  the  blue  of  the  zenith. 
Long  waves  of  rose  crept  around  to  the  north  and  south  and 
stained  the  sky  in  the  east.  A  cluster  of  palms  stood  up, 
black,  against  the  vivid  color,  and  some  pools  of  water,  to  the 
left  of  them,  looked  like  lakes  of  melted  rubies,  and  gave  back 
reflections  of  the  trees.  The  Other-one  drew  in  her  breath 
sharply.  The  glor;-  of  it  all,  the  color,  the  sight  of  undulat- 
ing stretches  of  that  mysterious,  illimitable  Desert,  with  its 
strange  life,  its  unconquered  wastes,  all  gave  a  sensation  that 
one  has  but  few  times  in  life,  a  sense  of  the  mystery  that 
underlies  everything  in  nature,  and  there  are  no  words 
that  can  describe  this  feeling. 

Cherif  was  the  most  sympathetic  of  guides.  He  stood  still 
as  if  carved  from  stone,  until,  at  a  sign  from  his  lady,  he 
turned  and  went  up  again  with  her,  across  the  square  with 
the  fountain  to  the  hotel.  The  color  had  not  yet  entirely 
faded  out  of  the  sky,  and  it  was  light  enough  to  see  the  groups 
in  front  of  it.  Approaching  near,  the  Other-one  was  sur- 
prised to  see  the  Commander  in  animated  conversation  with 
a  tall,  bronzed  man  of  pleasing  appearance.  The  Command- 
er 's  face  was  bright ;  his  cheerful  laugh  rang  out  on  the  even- 
ing air,  and  there  w^as  an  alertness  in  his  manner,  a  briskness, 
that  was  as  far  from  the  fatigue  he  had  shown  before  as  one 
could  well  imagine.  Could  this  brilliant  and  animated  man 
be  the  one  that  the  Lady  had  left  but  half  an  hpur  ago,  pale 
and  drooping  with  weariness?  She  cast  at  him  a  look  of  re- 
proach, that  he  should  have  left  her  to  see  that  glorious 
Desert  scene  alone!  He  had  the  grace  to  look  somewhat 
foolish  when  he  saw  her,  but  hastened  to  say: 

*'  I  am  glad  you  have  come.  I  wish  to  present  you  to  this 
gentleman  from  London,  Mr.  Stevens.  He  is  a  great  travel- 
ler, though  not  by  automobile  —  and  I  have  greatly  enjoyed 
this  conversation  with  him.'* 

The  Lady  acknowledged  the  polite  bow  of  the  Englishman, 

[  270  ] 


TO   TOUGGOURT 

meet  the  motor.  As  he  drew  near,  they  saw  it  was  Abd-el- 
Kader,  a  smile  of  joy  irradiating  his  face.  When  the  party 
had  alighted  and  Cherif  was  undoing  the  luncheon,  the 
native  drew  near  the  Lady,  and  putting  his  hand  in  the  breast 
of  his  white,  half-long  garment,  pulled  out  half  a  dozen  fresh 
eggs  and  a  bottle  of  milk  and  hesitatingly  offered  them  to  her. 

*  *  The  dear  savage !  *  *  she  exclaimed.  *  *  He  is  the  gentlest 
and  most  grateful  of  creatures!  We  gave  him  food  and  a 
ride  yesterday,  and  he  has  been  in  wait  to  return  the  kind- 
ness to-day.  Now  we  shall  have  milk  for  our  coffee  to-morrow 
morning  at  Mraier,  thanks  to  Abd-el-Kader.  *  * 

When  the  repast  was  at  an  end  and  the  remains  were 
gathered  up  and  given  to  the  natives,  they  sat  down  with 
manifestations  of  delight  and  fell  at  once  upon  the  feast, — 
all  but  Abd-el-Kader,  who  stood  apart  and  eyed  mournfully 
Adrian's  preparations  for  departure. 

**  Do  give  the  poor  soul  another  ride;  he  is  heartbroken 
to  have  us  go!  *'  begged  the  Lady. 

*  *  No !  *  *  said  the  Commander.  *  *  We  are  in  haste ;  the  car 
has  been  taxed  to  the  utmost  to-day,  and  I  do  not  want  to 
add  his  weight,  even  for  a  short  ride ;  besides,  it  would  make 
him  more  discontented.*' 

The  last  they  saw  of  Abd-el-Kader,  he  was  gazing  after 
them  sadly;  then  the  green  oasis  grew  dimmer  and  dimmer, 
and  at  last  it  disappeared  in  the  distance,  and  again  a  wide 
expanse  of  sand  spread  before  them. 

It  was  some  time  before  sundown  that  afternoon  when  the 
car  rolled  under  the  gate  in  the  walls  of  the  caravansary  at 
Mraier.  There  was  visible  excitement  everywhere.  A  crowd 
of  Arabs  hovered  around  the  entrance,  and  in  the  courtyard 
also,  many  natives  were  standing  around  or  squatting  on  the 
ground,  so  that  Adrian  was  obliged  to  move  the  car  care- 
fully to  the  place  where  it  was  to  stand  for  the  night.  The 
travellers  were  somewhat  surprised  to  see,  seated  at  a  table 
on  the  opposite  side,  the  gallant  figure  of  the  Commandant 
whom  they  had  encountered  on  the  desert  the  day  before. 
Near  him  was  seated  a  man,  evidently  a  kaid,  from  his  fine 

[273] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

dress  and  distinguished  bearing.  There  were  writing  ma- 
terials on  the  table  and  another  native  in  a  blue  embroidered 
Arab  suit  and  voluminous  haik  flowing  over  his  shoulders 
stood  respectfully  near,  evidently  acting  in  the  capacity  of  an 
interpreter.  Some  of  the  Arabs  standing  near  were  arrayed 
in  fine  burnouses  and  snowy  hdiks  and  were  evidently  also 
important  persons.  Many  more  common-looking  natives, 
their  burnouses  of  dirty  coffee-colored  rags  wrapped  closely 
around  them,  were  crouched  around  on  the  ground. 

After  the  Lady  had  refreshed  herself  with  a  short  rest  in 
her  cool  little  cell  of  a  bedroom,  she  took  her  kodak  and  went 
out  into  the  courtyard.  The  Commander  had  already  gone 
out  to  hover  anxiously  over  his  beloved  automobile  and  to 
ask  a  hundred  questions  of  Adrian,  in  order  to  be  assured 
that  no  injury  had  happened  to  it  in  its  rough  work  over  the 
poor  road.  The  Other-one  looked  for  a  chance  to  snap  up  the 
fascinating  coterie  of  natives  there.  Having  slyly,  and  with 
some  difficulty,  accomplished  this,  unseen,  she  wandered  out 
through  the  open  gate,  hoping,  though  it  was  getting  late,  for 
further  opportunities.  She  walked  on  for  some  distance,  but 
found  nothing  but  a  stretch  of  sand,  some  palm-trees  and  the 
distant  native  villages,  too  far  away  to  give  good  results, 
even  with  an  old  man  in  the  foreground  driving  a  diminutive 
donkey  with  pigskins  full  of  water  hanging  on  either  side  of 
it.  Disappointed,  she  turned  to  retrace  her  steps,  when  she 
saw,  coming  toward  her,  a  most  splendid-looking  kaid,  one 
she  had  especially  noticed  in  the  courtyard  for  his  fine  pale 
blue  burnous,  his  snowy  haik  and  hose,  his  beautiful  patent- 
leather  pumps,  and  his  soft,  silky,  black  beard.  As  he  drew 
near,  he  fixed  his  fine  eyes  upon  her  and  smiled  in  the  most 
engaging  manner.  The  Other-one  felt  her  heart  throb  with 
fear.  There  was  no  one  around  but  the  old  Arab,  who  seemed 
to  be  both  blind  and  deaf.  What  could  this  magnificent  kaid 
want  of  her  ?  She  had  no  beauty  to  grace  his  harem,  and  her 
hair  was  gray.  A  cry  rose  to  her  lips  and  she  turned,  with 
trembling  limbs,  to  run  for  the  caravansary  gate,  when  she 

[274]    „ 


TO   TOUGGOURT 

heard  a  shout,  and  behold,  the  omnipresent  Cherif  was  gal- 
loping toward  her.    Never  was  a  \nAng  more  welcome! 

*'  Let  us  go  at  once  back  to  the  inn  !  ' '  she  exclaimed. 

*  *  Oh !  ray  lady,  here  is  the  kaid  of  one  of  the  tribes  near 
[and  here  Cherif  gave  an  unwritable  name].  He  saw  my 
lady  taking  photographs,  and  he  wishes  her  to  take  his,  and 
also  his  camel  which  is  off  there.  The  kaid  willi  be  so,  so 
happy.*' 

Never  was  fear  changed  so  quickly  to  joy.  Hastily  the 
Other-one  prepared  her  kodak,  charmed  to  have  so  pictur- 
esque a  subject.  The  kaid  then  posed  like  a  statue,  his  bur- 
nous falling  in  graceful  folds  around  him  and  his  hands 
placed  stiffly  in  front  of  him,  in  imitation  of  what  he  must 
have  seen  in  snino  provincinl  French  photograph.  When  the 
Lady  had  taki  n  liim  tlie  kaid  clapped  his  hands.  Two  natives 
appeared  quickly  from  behind  a  clump  of  palms,  and  drove 
up  the  great  mehari,  or  camel,  beautifully  caparisoned.  After 
the  beast  had  been  made  to  lie  down,  which  he  did  with  much 
bubbling  and  spiteful  protestation,  the  kaid  mounted  to  his 
seat,  making  a  majestic-looking  figure,  and  the  Lady,  with  the 
utmost  joy,  pointed  the  camera  at  him.  Then  there  was  a 
polite  exchange  of  compliments  and  thanks;  her  card  given 
and  the  kaid's  name  written  down  by  Cherif. 

(And  here  it  may  be  related,  in  parenthesis,  that  when  the 
Lady  went  to  Paris  some  months  later,  she  caused  to  be  made 
an  enlarged  photograph  of  the  kaid  and  his  camel,  and  sent 
it  to  the  landlord  at  Mraier,  requesting  him  to  hunt  up  the 
kaid  and  present  it  with  her  compliments.  Some  time  after- 
ward, when  she  had  almost  forgotten  the  circumstance,  there 
came  a  letter  from  the  landlord,  saying  that  the  kaid  had 
that  day  come  to  the  caravansary  and  had  been  presented 
with  the  photograph,  with  which  he  was  delighted;  so  much 
80,  that  he  wished  to  send  the  gracious  lady  a  case  of  the  far- 
famed  Sahara  dates,  provided  she  would  forward  her  ad- 
dress **  plainly  written.'*  It  is  needless  to  add  that  this  was 
done,  and  the  dates  which  came  merited  well  their  fame. ) 


[275 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

While  the  Other-one  was  preparing  for  dinner  as  well  as 
she  was  able  in  their  little  cell,  before  a  diminutive  mirror, 
she  related  to  the  Commander  her  adventure. 

The  Commander  laughed  heartily.  '*  You  are  alto- 
gether too  romantic  to  travel  well !  "  he  exclaimed.  ' '  You 
are  always  letting  your  imagination  run  away  with  you  and 
making  mountains  out  of  molehills.  If  you  would  not  read 
so  many  novels,  and  would  come  to  view  things  in  a  plain, 
common-sense  manner,  you  would  be  much  happier.'* 

**  I  get  a  lot  of  fun  out  of  my  imaginings,  at  any  rate.'' 

**  I  can't  see  where  the  fun  comes  in  —  being  frightened 
half  to  death  on  your  travels  whenever  something  a  little  out 
of  the  ordinary  occurs,"  said  the  Commander,  dryly. 

' '  You  are  not  a  woman, ' '  returned  the  Other-one,  * '  and 
you  do  not  understand!  " 

When  they  went  into  the  little  dining-room  that  evening, 
they  found  the  Commandant  of  the  Department  seated  at  the 
head  of  the  table  with  two  gentlepien  and  a  lady  near  him, 
who  had  arrived  by  the  stage  from  Biskra.  Here  was  the 
genial  Mr.  Stevens,  also,  who  had  gotten  in,  he  informed  them, 
just  a  few  minutes  before.  He  greeted  them  like  an  old 
friend,  saying,  ' '  And  a  beastly  ride  it  was  over  a  most  ex- 
traordinarily bad  road,  and  I  had  to  rise  at  an  uncommonly 
early  hour;  then  being  thrown  about  all  day  in  that  coach, 
you  know,  was  very  annoying."  The  good-hearted  Comman- 
der hastened  to  say,  ' '  You  must  certainly  go  back  in  our 
automobile  with  us  to  Biskra.  You  will  find  it  an  improve- 
ment on  the  stage,  and  you  may  sleep  until  seven  in  the  morn- 
ing." The  Englishman  protested;  such  an  extraordinarily 
kind  offer,  he  could  not  accept,  but  finally  he  succumbed  to 
the  insistence  of  the  Commander. 

The  two  men  fell  into  a  mutually  interesting  conversation, 
while  the  Other-one  turned  her  attention  to  the  handsome 
bronzed  soldier  at  the  head  of  the  table.  The  people  seated 
near  him  were  evidently  newcomers  in  Algeria,  and  were  in- 
telligently questioning  him  as  to  the  state  of  affairs  in  this 
country.      The   officer  was   answering  them   with   apparent 

[276] 


TO   TOUGGOURT 

pleasure.  The  sad  and  weary  look  had  gone  out  of  his  face 
and  his  eyes  sparkled  with  animation.  This  is,  in  substance, 
what  he  told  them,  in  answer  to  the  various  questions  put  to 
him. 

**  It  is  true  that  the  road  from  Biskra  to  Touggourt  is  very 
bad.  It  is  no  made  road  in  fact,  just  a  camel  trail  used  by 
the  stage ;  elsewhere,  all  through  Algeria  you  will  find  excel- 
lent military  roads.  In  this  country,  as  in  Tunisia,  our  army 
has  paved  the  way  to  civilization  by  making  roads  across  the 
plains  and  over  the  mountains.  We  plant  trees,  dig  wells, 
and  are  soon  followed  by  telegraph  lines  and  post-offices,  then 
by  schools.  From  1834  to  1870,  Algeria  was  entirely  under 
military  rule.  After  a  time  a  civil  governor  was  appointed 
to  administer  the  affairs  of  the  colony,  though  only  in  settled 
districts.  The  Sahara,  here,  is  yet  under  military  rule.  Al- 
geria is  divided  into  three  departments  or  provinces ;  Algiers, 
Oran,  and  Constantine,  administered  by  a  Prefect,  but  always 
under  the  authority  of  the  Governor-General,  who  is  also  as- 
sisted by  a  Ck)uncil  of  Government,  composed  of  the  principal 
civil  and  military  authorities.  Algeria  sends  three  senators 
and  six  deputies  to  the  National  Assembly.  The  mediation 
between  the  native  chiefs  and  the  Government  authori- 
ties is  carried  on  by  what  was  once  called  the  Bureaux 
Arahes;  now,  the  Service  des  Affaires  Indigenes.  It  is  com- 
posed of  officers  who  have  been  long  trained  in  Algeria,  and 
who  come  between  the  Commandants  and  the  native  chiefs. 
It  judges,  collects  taxes,  collects  revenue,  and  watches  all  the 
politics  of  the  districts;  trains  the  Arab,  advises  the  Com- 
mandant, and  crushes  the  first  sign  of  an  outbreak.  When 
our  army  marches,  a  Bureau  Arabe  goes  with  it.  We  should 
be  proud  of  this  splendidly  organized  system  and  of  the  wise 
policy  of  France  toward  her  colonies,  which  has  been  the 
most  successful  policy,  even  more  than  that  of  any  other  na- 
tion toward  their  colonies. 

**  Our  country  has  realized  the  value  of  cooperation  in- 
stead of  coercion,  therefore  the  kaids  and  sheiks,  who  have 
always  exacted  obedience  from  their  tribes  and  are  the  recog- 

[277] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

nized  heads  of  them, —  the  sub-religious  heads, —  were  made 
the  mediators  between  the  Commandants  and  the  tribes  and 
became  practically  prefects,  councillors,  and  judges.  These 
kaids  of  Algeria,  and  Tunisia  also,  to  whom  our  country  gave 
so  much  complimentary  power,  contributed  in  cash,  in  1890, 
the  sum  of  sixteen  million  francs  which  they  had  collected 
from  their  tribes,  and  which  may  originally  have  been  paid  to 
the  kaid;  here  a  quintal  of  wheat,  there  a  half-dozen  sheep, 
or  a  few  hundred  kilos  of  dates.  These  kaids  and  sheiks  are 
paid  less,  as  a  matter  of  course,  than  our  countrymen  would 
be,  if  used  as  emissaries  of  the  civil  control.  They  even  have 
much  greater  authority,  backed  by  our  country,  with  their 
own  people.  It  is  probable  they  put  something  in  their  own 
pockets  in  the  transaction;  but  what  will  you?  "  said  the 
officer  with  a  most  expressive  shrug.  **  These  are  sometimes 
quite  wonderful  men,  speaking  and  writing  French  perfectly ; 
often  having  many  decorations,  even  the  Grand  Cross  of  the 
Legion  of  Honour.  , 

'*  Our  military  force  in  Algeria  constitutes  the  Nineteenth 
Corps  d'armee  of  France;  in  time  of  war  it  can  be  divided 
in  two  and  serve  in  Europe.  It  consists  of  four  regiments  of 
zouaves  or  chasseurs  d'Afriqiie,  three  regiments  of  Tirailleurs 
Indigenes  (sharpshooters),  six  battalions  of  chasseurs 
a  pied;  three  battalions  of  the  light  infantry  of 
Africa;  and  one  foreign  legion;  in  all  fifty-three  battal- 
ions of  infantry,  three  regiments  of  spahis  (native  cavalry), 
and  sixteen  batteries.  These  forces,  in  all,  amount  to  about 
sixty  thousand  men.  Frenchmen  born  in  the  country  are 
obliged  to  serve  only  one  year  instead  of  the  longer  period 
at  home.  Of  this  force  the  strictly  local  and  native  forces 
are  the  Tirailleurs  Indigenes  and  the  spahis. 

*'  There  are  also  our  native  men  on  the  Desert,  excellent 
scouts,  called  Goums.  Each  kaid  of  a  tribe  is  obliged  to 
furnish  a  certain  number  of  able-bodied  men  when  our  Gov- 
ernment needs  them,  so  they  furnish  these  Goums  who  are 
fighters  of  the  open  country.  They  are  versed  in  many  things 
in  warfare  of  which  the  soldier  of  the  garrison  knows  noth- 

[278] 


TO   TOUGGOURT 

ing.  They  are  a  sort  of  savage  soldiery,  but  they  are  very 
useful  to  us.  Our  regular  soldiers  have  to  get  acclimated, 
when  fighting  in  a  new  country,  but  the  Goum  of  the  South 
Sahara  can  go  to  work  at  once  effectively.  These  natives 
are  volunteers  and  serve  without  salary,  only  getting  muni- 
tions of  war  and  food  from  the  Government.  They  furnish 
even  their  own  horses  and  guns.  The  Goum  would  rather 
fight  than  do  anything  else.  To  furnish  these  is  a  duty,  there- 
fore, which  the  kaids  owe  to  our  Government  for  the  protec- 
tion it  affords  each  individual  tribe.'* 

The  officer  paused  for  a  while  and  a  sad  look  came  into  his 
eyes.    Then  he  resumed: 

**  Now  there  is  a  demand  that  the  civil  government  should 
be  extended.  But  I  feel  that  the  service  of  our  army  should 
never  be  overlooked.  Its  results  are  shown  in  the  great 
works  carried  out  everywhere  by  it.  After  the  conquest  it 
pacified  the  country  and  gave  the  best  administration  it  could 
under  the  circumstances.  Even  now,  civil  government  is 
practical  only  in  those  districts  entirely  pacified  or  where 
there  is  a  large  European  element. 

*  *  What  has  our  grand  country  not  done  for  the  natives  of 
Algeria !  She  has  freed  them  from  the  bondage  of  their  cruel 
taskmasters,  the  Turks :  she  has  given  them  regular  labor  in 
vineyards,  date  plantations,  orange  groves,  railways,  ship- 
yards, and  a  thousand  other  things  in  commercial  lines.  She 
has  given  them  police,  sanitation,  and  a  certain  civilization, 
as  far  as  their  religion  will  allow  them  to  accept  it.  She  has 
given  them  courts  of  law  where  all  their  grievances  can  be 
remedied  without  bribes  to  corrupt  sheiks.  She  has  caused 
their  property  to  be  secured  to  them  by  the  efforts  of  our 
Service  des  Affaires  Indigenes,  and,  with  all  else,  the  dis- 
putes between  rival  tribes  are  settled.  All  this  has  cost 
France  hundreds  of  millions  of  francs.  Let  us  drink  to  our 
wonderful  country  —  la  belle  France!  *'  and  the  officer  raised 
his  glass  of  wine  high  in  the  air,  then  quaffed  it  to  the  bot- 
tom.   The  others  followed  suit. 

The  Other-one  had  listened  with  the  greatest  interest,  and 

[279  1 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

now  felt  like  saying  ' '  Hurrah !  '  *  She  had  been  conscious  of 
the  other  men  only  by  the  hum  of  their  low-toned  conversa- 
tion. She  was  now  aware  that  they  were  getting  very  sleepy, 
for  they  were  yawning  heavily,  so  she  arose  and  bade  all 
good-night.  The  Frenchman  arose  also,  bowing  politely.  She 
followed  the  Commander  out  of  the  room,  regretting  she  must 
lose  any  of  the  gallant  soldier's  interesting  talk. 

About  three  o  'clock  the  next  morning,  she  heard  the  stage 
rumbling  away,  and  the  Commander  murmured  sleepily, 
' '  Thank  heaven !  poor  Mr.  Stevens  is  not  being  rattled  off 
in  that  torture  wagon !  " 

Wlien  they  came  out  of  the  little  dining-room  the  next 
morning,  ready  for  departure,  the  Other-one  remarked  that 
the  coffee  was  really  excellent  with  the  good  milk  given  them 
by  the  gentle  Abd-el-Kader. 

*  *  Well, ' '  exclaimed  the  Commander,  as  he  climbed  into  the 
car,  *  *  that  makes  the  fifth  kind  of  milk  I  have  had  in  my 
life." 

'*  Fifth  kind  of  milk,"  echoed  the  Other-one.  **  What  do 
you  mean  ?  ' ' 

* '  Well !  "  he  returned,  * '  I  began  with  mother 's  milk,  then 
I  had  cow's  milk,  and  later  goat's  milk.  Once  in  New  Mex- 
ico, I  drank  sheep's  milk;  but  I  never  had  camel's  milk  until 
this  morning. ' ' 

*  *  Camel 's  milk !  ' '  cried  the  lady  in  disgust.  * '  Was  that 
what  Abd-el-Kader  gave  us?  Why  did  you  not  tell  me?  I 
could  not  have  touched  a  drop !  ' 

The  party  now  set  sail  again  upon  the  vast  Desert,  and 
soon  the  outlines  of  the  caravansary  were  blurred  in  the  dis- 
tance, and  then  the  palms  of  Mra'ier  faded  away.  The  Other- 
one  felt  as  though  they  had  cast  off  from  a  friendly  island 
and  now  they  were  afloat  on  a  wide  sea.  Once,  some  strange 
objects  appeared  moving  off  in  the  distance  before  them.  No 
One  could  make  out  what  they  might  be,  they  were  of  such 
curious  shape  and  appearance;  and,  as  the  car  drew  nearer, 
they  looked  like  grotesque  marine  monsters.  They  proved  to 
be  a  train  of  camels  laden  with  great  drain-pipes  hanging  on 

[  280  ] 


TO   TOUGGOURT 

each  side  of  them,  probably  destined  for  some  date  plantation. 
Now  they  saw  the  crystals  shimmering  on  the  borders  of  the 
Chott  Merouan,  a  prolongation  of  the  great  one  of  Melrir. 

Mr.  Stevens  had  been  reading  up  on  the  Desert,  and  this 
is,  briefly,  what  he  told :  * '  The  Chott  Melrir  occupies  a  depres- 
sion in  the  Sahara  lower  than  the  sea,  and  the  water  in  the 
gypseous  soil  is  Salter  than  it.  The  water  has  no  great  depth ; 
in  spring  and  summer  it  is  covered  with  crystals  owing  to 
evaporation,  so  that  the  eye  can  scarcely  distinguish  where  the 
water  ends  and  the  crystals  begin,  as  you  see  there.  People 
generally  believe  that  the  Sahara  is  entirely  a  great  plain  of 
moving  sand  with  flourishing  oases  here  and  there,  when,  in 
fact,  there  is  more  clay  and  rock  than  sand.  There  are  two 
very  distinct  regions  in  the  Sahara,  the  Upper  and  the  Lower. 
The  Upper  Sahara  is  a  vast  depression  of  sand  and  clay 
stretching  east  to  Tunis;  the  Lower,  a  rocky  plateau  extend- 
ing west  almost  to  Morocco.  We  pass  through  great  depres- 
sions which  the  sirocco  has  filled  with  yellow  sand  which  we 
see  stretching  away  for  miles.  The  road  passes  through  this, 
then  comes  up  again  to  the  clay  and  rock.'* 

At  noon,  the  party  stopped  at  a  small  oasis,  and  Cherif 
brought  forth,  triumphantly,  an  unexpectedly  good  luncheon, 
for  which  hi*  must  liave  foraged  both  in  Touggourt  and 
Mraier;  and  he  much  enjoyed  the  appreciation  of  his  party. 
Then  he  retired  to  a  respectful  distance  to  feed  upon  Arab 
bread  and  the  dried  locusts,  of  which  he  seemed  to  have  a 
plentiful  supply. 

Early  in  the  day  the  car  passed  the  creaking  stage,  whose 
weary  passengers  stared  enviously  at  the  Motorists,  as  they 
sped  by.  The  faint  outlines  of  the  Aures  Mountains  became 
visible,  a  rosy  mist  on  the  horizon,  then  they  grew  more  dis- 
tinct in  beautiful  tints  of  pale  mauve,  soft  rose,  and  heavenly 
blue  in  the  clefts,  a  haze  over  all  like  a  thin  veil,  which  made 
their  coloring  marvellously  beautiful.  And  the  car  bounded 
and  creaked  over  the  bad  road,  but  Mr.  Stevens  seemed  to 
consider  it  a  cradle  of  ease  and  luxury. 

Just  before  sunset  they  rolled   under  the  palms  of  the 

[281] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

streets  of  Biskra  and  came  to  a  stop  at  the  entrance-way  of 
the  long  white  hotel  where  a  crowd  of  Biskrans  sprung,  as  if 
by  magic,  from  the  ground,  to  crowd  around  the  motor.  The 
Desert  trip  was  over  and  the  Other-one  was  sorry  —  and  so 
was  Cherif. 


[282] 


CHAPTER  XIX 

AWAY  FROM  BISKRA:  A  DAY  OP  DISASTERS  IN  THE  DESERT 

THE  next  day,  after  the  return  from  the  Desert,  our 
Motorists  spent  in  wandering  through  Biskra  and  in 
seeing  again  those  places  which  had  most  interested  and  fas- 
cinated them. 

In  the  hot  afternoon  they  went  again  to  saunter  through 
the  avenues  of  the  Landon  garden,  under  the  delicious  shade 
of  the  palms,  and  to  refresh  themselves  with  the  sound  of 
the  running  water  and  the  warble  of  the  birds  hidden  in  the 
foliage  of  the  trees.  They  sat  down  on  the  parapet  wall 
again  and  looked  across  the  Desert  shimmering  in  the  warm 
sun,  to  the  green  oases  and  to  the  far  Aures,  the  opaline  tints 
on  their  flanks  and  summits,  and  the  divine,  ethereal  blue  in 
their  clefts. 

The  Commander  unfolded  his  plan  for  the  next  few  days. 
They  would  go  the  following  day  to  El  Kantara,  a  matter  of 
something  over  two  hours,  for  luncheon,  and  on  to  Timgad 
for  the  night,  arriving  early  enough  to  see  the  ruins  once 
more.  They  would  branch  off  at  Khenchella  and  go  by  an 
interesting  route  and  good  road  to  Hammam  Meskoutine, 
where  are  wonderful  petrified  springs,  then  to  Bone  on  the 
sea ;  thence  by  La  Calle, —  also  on  the  sea,  to  Tunis. 

**  It  will  be  a  glorious  trip,**  he  said. 

There  is  a  flat  roof  on  the  long  white  Moorish  hotel  at  Bis- 
kra, where  its  guests  who  are  wise  go  up  to  see  the  sunset. 
Of  course  our  travellers  went  there  to  watch  the  glory  of  the 
sky  after  the  sun  had  dropped  in  the  west,  a  great  ball  of 
fire.  Then  came  the  afterglow,  when  the  sky  changed  from 
amber  and  gold  to  the  color  of  the  pomegranate,  while,  up 
in  the  zenith  this  color  melted  to  soft,  deep  blue;  then  the 
splendor  faded  suddenly  away,  leavihg  the  sky  a  deep,  dark 

[283] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

blue,  and  the  brilliant  stars  came  out  almost  undimmed  by 
the  splendor  of  the  moon  rising  in  the  east.  The  evening 
breeze  swayed  the  palms,  and  the  houses  showed  white 
beneath  them  where  the  moonlight  sifted  through.  The 
sounds  from  the  town  came  up  softened;  the  wail  of  plain- 
tive music,  the  rhythmic  beat  of  the  derhoukas,  the  murmur 
of  voices,  punctuated  with  the  braying  of  donkeys,  the  snarl 
of  the  camels  in  their  fondouks,  and  the  barking  of  the  dogs 
in  the  village  negre.  Away  to  the  south  beyond  the  palms, 
our  travellers  knew,  stretched  the  boundless  Desert,  which 
they  had  only  penetrated  far  enough  to  long  to  go  farther 
into  its  mysterious,  silent  spaces. 

Off  the  next  morning,  from  Biskra,  whose  palms  the  Other- 
one  saw  fading  away  with  regret;  yet  she  was  stirred  with 
the  thought  of  scenes  to  come  even  more  Oriental  than  those 
she  left  behind.  Usually  very  provident  with  a  store  of 
mineral  water  and  biscuits  for  possible  delays  on  the  route, 
the  Commander,  this  time,  had  trusted  to  arriving  at  El 
Kantara  in  good  time  for  luncheon  at  the  clean  little  hotel 
there;  so  he  carried  not  even  a  bottle  of  water.  *^  We  need 
nothing  on  this  trip, ' '  he  said  to  the  Other-one ;  *  *  with  Adrian 
and  this  car  we  may  plan  to  arrive  anywhere  at  a  certain 
hour  and  we  never  fail  to  get  there  on  time.^* 

The  car  went  smoothly  across  the  sandy  plains  after  leav- 
ing Biskra*  Going  up  the  Col  de  Sfa  a  train  of  camels  was 
passed,  moving  slowly  along;  a  company  of  nomads  were 
evidently  on  the  march  seeking  new  places  for  their  tents. 
The  camels  were  laden  with  tents  and  poles ;  some  with  great 
panniers  full  of  all  sort  of  nondescript  things;  babies  and 
women  perched  on  them,  swaying  with  the  motion  of  the 
beasts,  and  looking  as  if  they  might  tumble  off  at  any  moment. 
Wild-eyed,  swarthy  men  drove  the  camels  along;  wretched- 
looking  donkeys,  also  laden,  and  gaunt  yellow  dogs  trailed 
behind.  It  was  a  characteristic  scene,  one  which  the  travel- 
lers often  saw  on  the  road.  All  this  strange  nomad  life, 
always  intensely  fascinating,  was  what  made  the  journey 
through  this  country  so  interesting,  in  spite  of  the  lack  many 

[284] 


AWAY   FROM    BISKRA 

times  of  comfortable  and  cleanly  inns,  and  having  to  endure 
other  minor  discomforts. 

Approaching  the  strange  vehicle,  the  camels  became  fright- 
ened and  began  to  snarl  and  back  away,  shaking  the  bur- 
dens on  their  backs  in  an  alarming  manner  and  setting  the 
women  and  babies  to  screaming.  The  wild-looking  men  ran, 
brandishing  their  sticks  and  uttering  harsh  cries,  while  the 
donkeys  brayed  and  the  dogs  howled.  It  was  pandemonium 
for  a  few  moments,  but  Adrian  got  his  car  out  of  the  tumult 
quickly  and  the  nomads  were  soon  left  far  behind.  The 
motor  hummed  on  across  the  Desert;  hills  of  rock  and  sand 
arose  at  the  left ;  the  great  mountains  gradually  closed  around 
in  the  distance  ahead ;  and  the  plain  of  golden  sand  stretched 
away  to  the  right,  dotted  with  patches  of  pale  green  —  the 
small  barley  fields  of  the  nomads,  the  black  spots  which  were 
their  tents  looking  like  strange  vegetable  growths. 

The  road  now  led  up  a  low  hill  of  rock  and  sand,  and  then 
came  down  again  to  the  plain ;  but  the  car  was  moving  slowly, 
and  when  it  was  down  on  the  level  again,  it  suddenly  gave  a 
lurch  forward;  there  was  a  grinding  noise,  then  the  motor 
stopped,  and  no  effort  of  Adrian  *s  could  move  it  an  inch. 
He  sprang  out  and  began  to  investigate,  taking  off  the  hood 
and  testing  the  magneto,  examining  the  spark  plugs  and  look- 
ing to  everything  that  an  experienced  chauffeur  examines 
when  his  car  is  refractory;  so  little  a  cause  will  prevent  it 
from  working  and  reduce  it  to  helplessness.  **  I  am  afraid, 
sir,  that  something  vital  is  the  matter;  she  has  not  done  her 
best  this  morning.  I  have  felt  it  ever  since  we  started,*' 
said  the  chauffeur,  anxiously.  **  I  think  it  may  be  in  the  gear 
box;  I  shall  have  to  take  everything  to  pieces  to  find  the 
trouble. '* 

**  Get  to  work,  then,  quick!  '*  ordered  the  Commander  de- 
cisively, jumping  out  in  his  turn. 

So  the  car  was  emptied  of  everything,  and  the  Lady  seated 
herself  on  a  bundle  and  felt,  she  said  **  like  Marius  before 
the  ruins  of  Carthage/'  The  chauffeur  was  soon  up  to  his 
elbows  in  grease,  while  the  good-hearted  Commander  hov- 

[285] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

ered  anxiously  around,  helping  whenever  it  was  possible, 
getting  himself  more  greasy  and  soiled,  even,  than  the  chauf- 
feur. When  the  two  had  worked  in  anxious  silence  for  what 
seemed  to  the  lady  an  interminable  time,  Adrian  cleared  the 
gear  box  of  all  the  grease,  then  he  looked  at  the  Commander 
gravely. 

* '  It  is  a  most  unusual  thing,  sir ;  one  of  the  wheels  has 
slipped  from  its  place  in  the  gear  box.*' 

**What  shall  we  do?*'  cried  the  Commander,  in  despair, 
*  *  way  off  here  on  the  Desert !  We  can  get  no  teams  to  pull 
us  back  to  Biskra !  ' ' 

' '  I  can  fix  it  myself, '  *  said  the  resourceful  chauffeur,  * '  but 
it  is  a  long  job.    It  will  take  all  day." 

**  And  we  have  nothing  to  eat  or  drink,  and  no  way  to  get 
anything!  Nothing  in  sight  but  those  nomad  tents,  far  off 
there  on  the  plain." 

Adrian  did  not  stop  to  listen  to  what  the  Commander  was 
saying,  but  began  at  once  his  labor  of  repairing  the  damage. 
Meantime  the  Other-one  had  resigned  herself  to  her  fate  and 
was  trying  to  extract  what  interest  and  amusement  she  could 
out  of  the  surroundings.  She  looked  afar  across  the  plain, 
broken  here  and  there  by  low  sandy  hills.  She  could  see 
the  black  spots  of  the  nomad  tents,  the  strips  of  pale  green 
of  their  little  plots  of  barley,  the  intense  blue  of  the  sky,  the 
golden  and  gray  sand  of  the  hills,  the  gray,  too,  of  the  low- 
growing  furze,  the  blue-green  of  the  scrub,  and  there  were 
subtle  half-tones  that  would  have  fascinated  an  artist.  It 
was  all  so  still,  since  the  car  had  stopped;  no  sound  but  the 
low  voices,  now  and  then,  of  the  Commander  and  the  patient 
chauffeur.  The  sun  shone  down  with  a  tropical  intensity. 
An  hour  or  two  had  gone  by,  when  the  camels  and  nomads 
they  had  passed  in  the  morning  came  in  sight  and  straggled 
slowly  by,  far  at  one  side.  The  moving  nomads  were  probably 
entirely  satisfied  with  their  mode  of  conveyance  when  they 
saw  the  car,  still,  with  all  its  baggage  strewn  around  it. 

It  was  not  long,  now,  before  Bedouins  from  the  distant 
tents  began  to  come  up  in  small  groups,  eying,  with  looks  of 

[286] 


AWAY  FROM   BISKRA 

wonder,  the  broken-down  car  and  the  strange  beings  around 
it.  The  dark-skinned  men,  wrapped  in  rags  of  burnouses, 
jabbered  in  their  harsh  gutturals.  The  women  wore  equally 
filthy  rags,  drawn  up  over  their  shoulders,  but  they  had  some 
wisps  of  blue  or  red  cloth  bound  over  their  heads,  and  wore 
crude  necklaces  of  silver  pieces  around  their  necks  and  rudely 
fashioned  anklets  jingling  around  their  bare  brown  ankles. 
Some  of  them  bore  little  wizened  babies,  almost  nude ;  while 
older  children,  wrapped,  too,  in  rags,  hovered  around  their 
mothers  or  made  sudden  sallies  toward  the  car  and  fled  with 
shrieks  of  fear  when  the  Commander  blew  the  horn.  Among 
these  little  brown  nomads  was  one  really  chubby  child,  the 
only  one  among  them  all  who  had  the  slightest  claim  to  even 
good  looks.  Her  little  round  brown  eyes  looked  out  good- 
naturedly  from  the  swathing  of  rags  around  her  head.  The 
Other-one  had  been  gazing  off  on  the  Desert  and  sometimes 
toward  the  distant  filmy  mountains  at  the  north,  revelling  in 
all  the  unusual  coloring,  so  soft  and  ethereal,  of  the  Desert's 
palette.  She  now  turned  her  attention  to  study  these  strange 
beings,  so  far  outside  her  world  in  everything  that  was  her 
life.  She  felt  drawn  at  once  to  the  funny,  chubby,  little  mite ; 
she  longed  to  seize  her,  wash  her,  comb  her  hair,  and  dress  her 
in  decent  clothes.  The  little  creature  was  at  once  responsive  to 
the  evident  interest  she  excited  in  the  lady.  She  drew  shyly 
near,  smiled  up  in  a  most  engaging  way,  and,  from  a  little, 
much  discolored  sheepskin  bag  she  held  in  her  hand,  she  drew 
out  a  half-dozen  boiled  lentils  and  proffered  them  to  the  lady, 
as  one  in  her  station  of  life  would  have  proffered  her  a  bunch 
of  glorious  roses.  The  round  eyes  of  the  little  nomad  lighted  up 
with  the  joy  of  a  new  and  agreeable  experience,  and  she  drew 
still  nearer,  but  the  Other-one,  for  obvious  reasons,  was  not 
disposed  to  admit  the  little  creature  to  too  close  an  intimacy, 
fascinating  as  was  her  chubby  personality.  The  Lady  rose 
from  her  seat,  attracting  the  attention  of  all  the  brown, 
bedraggled  women,  and  they  came  quickly  nearer,  but  the 
men  were  wholly  absorbed  in  gazing  at  the  car.  She  looked 
at  all  the  crowd  of  unsavory  women  around  her.    What  mis- 

[287] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

erable,  pitiful,  meagre,  half-fed,  ragged  creatures  they  were, 
—  the  poorest,  by  their  looks,  of  all  God's  creatures!  The 
women  and  children  were  now  pressing  unpleasantly  close; 
she  gave  a  loud  cry  and  gesticulated  wildly  toward  the  car, 
and  then  they  turned  and  ran  toward  it  and  evidently  for- 
got her  existence  in  a  few  moments. 

She  slipped  hastily  away  and  climbed  over  a  sandy  mound 
covered  scantily  with  scrub,  at  a  little  distance  off  from  the 
road.  Once  over,  she  was  well  hidden  from  the  crowd,  and 
she  was  much  surprised  to  see,  at  some  rods  farther  on,  three 
or  four  tents  spread  out  on  the  sand.  Now  was  her  oppor- 
tunity to  look  into  these,  as  she  had  often  wished  for  a  chance. 
She  could  not  be  seen  by  the  people  round  the  motor  and 
there  was  no  one  evidently  in,  or  near,  the  tents.  She  walked 
up  to  the  first  tent,  stretched  out  on  short  poles,  a  ragged 
brown,  black,  and  white  striped  camel's-hair  cloth,  which 
tent  cloth  the  nomad  women  themselves  weave  in  the  open 
air,  on  rude  looms.  The  tent  wa^  so  low  that  only  a  very 
short  person  could  stand  upright  in  it.  The  flaps  were  pushed 
far  back,  and  she  could  see  the  whole  interior;  some  dried 
bunch  grass  was  strewed  around  and  there  was  an  assortment 
of  most  filthy  rags  at  the  back,  evidently  the  beds  of  the  fam- 
ily. In  front,  some  pots  and  pans  of  pottery  discolored  by 
the  smoke,  a  cracked  jar  of  lentils,  some  dusty  dates  in  a 
small  basket,  and  a  mill,  like  that  of  all  primitive  people, 
consisting  of  two  round  stones,  the  upper  with  a  hole  to  hold 
the  stick  by  which  it  could  be  turned  on  the  under  stone 
which  is  hollowed  out;  and  thus  they  grind  their  grain.  A 
flat  basket  of  barley  lay  near,  containing  a  few  cupfuls. 
There  were  some  other  rudely  fashioned  dishes,  one  or  two 
being  pierced  with  holes  and  black  with  dirt  and  grease. 
They  were  probably  for  cooking  the  cous-cous,  the  universal 
dish  of  the  rich  and  the  poor  in  this  country. 

The  interior  of  the  tent  was  so  uninviting,  that  the  Other- 
one  concluded  not  to  enter,  but  walked  on  to  survey  a  smaller 
tent  close  by.  She  had  scarcely  come  near  it,  when  a  gaunt 
yellow  and  white  dog  sprang  from  it,  barking  fiercely,  evi- 

[  288  ] 


AWAY  FROM  BISKRA 

dently;  the  guardian  of  the  tents  around.  The  Lady  turned 
in  great  alarm  to  fly  up  the  hill,  but  she  saw  the  women  and 
children  running  down  it.  They  had  discovered  her  where- 
abouts and  were  coming  to  do  the  honors  of  their  homes,  for 
here  was  probably  where  they  had  their  abiding-place  for 
the  time.  They  came  up  and  surrounded  her,  chattering  vol- 
ubly in  their  harsh  jargon.  They  had  her  now,  and  it  seemed 
they  intended  to  make  the  most  of  the  opportunity.  They 
drew  still  closer,  picked  at  her  watch,  her  rings,  pulled  up 
the  skirt  of  her  dress,  and  one  old  wrinkled  crone  with  blear 
eyes  tried  to  pull  it  off.  Another  knelt  to  scratch  at  her  shoes, 
while  a  weazened  younger  woman  attempted  to  jerk  off  her 
hat,  and  succeeded  in  tearing  off  the  veil  attached  to  it. 
Taking  advantage  of  a  scrabble  for  the  possession  of  the  veil, 
the  Lady  rushed  away  from  her  tormentors  and  ran  over  the 
hill  to  the  car,  where  she  arrived  panting,  the  whole  crew 
clamoring  after.  **  Her  ruling  passion  strong  in  death,**  she 
turned  to  snap  some  of  them  with  her  kodak. 

**  Where  have  you  been?  ''  asked  the  perspiring  and  greasy 
Commander,  looking  up  from  his  work.  **  You  should  not 
go  off  alone  like  that ;  but  have  you  found  anything  for  us  to 
eat,  or  any  water!  We  are  hungry  as  wolves,  and  parched 
with  thirst.*' 

**  If  you  could  see  the  tents  where  I  have  been,  you  would 
not  ask  that.  As  to  water,  the  nomads  must  have  it  some- 
where, but  if  they  should  bring  it  in  their  dirty  pots  or  pig- 
skins, you  would  not  dare  to  drink  it,  you  have  such  a  holy 
horror  of  microbes." 

So  the  long  day  wore  on.  All  the  plain  stretching  away 
was  shimmering  in  heat.  The  sky  was  pitiless  in  its  vivid 
blue.  Not  a  cloud  came  to  veil  the  hot  rays  of  the  sun.  The. 
nomads  came  and  went;  they  seemed  to  have  an  unfailing 
interest  in  all  the  proceedings.  The  Other-one  could  not  see 
that  theJ  poor  little  half-clad  children  had  had  anything  to 
eat  but  a  few  cold  boiled  lentils,  of  which  the  little  chubby 
one  seemed  to  have  the  most.  She  was  the  gourmand  of  the 
party,  which  accounted  for  her  chubbiness,  probably. 

[289] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

At  length,  when  the  afternoon  was  waning,  Adrian 
announced  that  the  car  was  in  order.  The  weary  travellers 
were  soon  on  their  way,  and  the  great  gash  of  El  Kantara  was 
before  them,  with  the  tortured,  twisted,  ochreous  rocks  ris- 
ing high  on  each  side,  while  the  Oued  Kantara  boiled  under 
the  Roman  bridge.  The  sky  was  now  gray,  the  rocks  and  the 
mountains  gray  too,  and  the  wind  was  blowing  the  dust  of 
the  road  into  whirlpools.  They  seemed  to  have  left  the  land 
of  sunshine  and  suave  breezes  behind  them. 

Hungry  and  thirsty,  the  Motorists  descended  at  the  little 
hotel,  where  they  hoped  for  a  clean  and  comfortable  luncheon, 
from  their  experience  when  going  south.  The  Other-one 
rushed  into  the  cool  little  dining-room,  which  had  a  festive 
air,  with  many  little  tables  set  with  clean  white  cloths, 
delighting  her  soul  with  the  thoughts  of  a  delicious  supper. 
When  she  ordered  —  to  be  brought  at  once  —  a  delectable 
meal,  the  patronne,  who  was  giving  some  orders  to  the  wor- 
ried-looking waiter,  seemed  quite  offended.  It  was  quite 
impossible,  she  declared ;  the  dinner  was  now  being  prepared 
and  would  be  ready  in  an  hour  and  a  half;  Madame  must 
wait  until  then.  The  Commander  was  wroth  indeed,  but  this 
only  complicated  matters.  However,  after  some  pressure 
being  brought  to  bear  on  the  patronne,  and  a  good  fee 
slipped  in  the  hands  of  the  meek  waiter,  he  produced  some 
scraps  of  cold  ham,  a  loaf  or  two  of  dried  bread,  some  withered 
oranges,  and  a  handful  of  dusty  dates.  With  these  the  hun- 
gry party  were  fain  to  content  themselves,  but  looked  eagerly 
forward  to  a  hot  supper  at  Batna,  a  distance  of  only  seventy 
kilometres. 

When  the  Commander  went  out,  he  found  the  weary  Adrian 
pumping  up  a  tire,  which  had  suddenly  gone  flat,  while  they 
were  at  supper.  *  *  Another  delay, ' '  grumbled  the  Com- 
mander. '*  This  is  most  unfortunate.  Shall  we  ever  get  to 
Batna?  And  I  fully  expected  to  be  in  Timgad  for  the 
night!  " 

As  they  rolled  away  from  the  inhospitable  inn,  a  fine  driz- 
zling rain  began,  which  puffs  of  wind  drove  into  the  car, 

[  290  ] 


AWAY   FROM    BISKRA 

wetting  them  all  in  spite  of  the  sheltering  curtains  having 
been  lowered, —  adding  another  misery  to  those  already 
endured.  The  night  had  now  dropped  down,  and  the  motor 
hummed  on,  the  road  showing  white  under  the  blaze  of  the 
lamps,  with  the  black  shadows  of  trees  or  rocks  thrown  across 
it  now  and  then.  The  party  had  been  silent  for  a  long  time ; 
there  was  no  sound  but  that  of  the  throbbing  engine,  when 
suddenly  a  loud  report  startled  everybody.  *  *  It 's  a  tire 
burst,**  exclaimed  the  chauffeur  phlegmatically,  and  got  out 
in  the  pouring  rain,  working  patiently  to  replace  the  tire  — 
an  hour's  work.  On  again  for  four  or  five  kilometres  more, 
then  crack!  another  tire  went. 

**  It  *8  the  last  one  we  have  left, —  the  one  I  must  put  on,** 
said  Adrian  wearily.  The  Commander  was  too  tired  to 
exclaim. 

A  dire  fate  was  certainly  pursuing  them.  It  was  over  an 
hour's  slow  work.  When  they  were  moving  on  again,  the 
lights  in  front  of  the  car  were  burning  dimly;  the  shadows 
grew  blacker  across  the  road;  deep  ravines  seemed  to  open 
before;  great  black  gulfs  stretched  on  each  side  of  the  way. 
Then  the  lamps  went  out ;  all  was  plunged  into  pitchy  dark- 
ness, and  the  rain  and  wind  increased. 

*  *  We  must  stay  here  all  night !  *  *  exclaimed  the  Com- 
mander, but  Adrian  got  silently  out  and  worked  at  the  genera- 
tor by  the  light  of  the  small  oil-lamps,  which  had  only  seemed 
for  ornament  heretofore,  in  front  of  the  car.  At  length,  how- 
ever, he  found  his  efforts  useless,  and  they  were  forced  to 
proceed  very  slowly  and  carefully  by  the  feeble  light  the 
small  lamps  gave  intermittently,  for  the  wind  blew  them  out 
several  times. 

It  was  past  midnight  when  the  weary  party  came  into 
Batna  and  descended  at  the  small  hotel  on  the  main  street, 
which  had  been  recommended  to  them.  Tired,  famished, 
parched  with  thirst,  wet  through  from  the  falling  rain,  they 
waited  at  the  entrance,  while  a  cross  porter  opened  the  big 
door. 

**  What  do  you  want  this  time  of  night?**  he  growled. 

[291] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

**  Supper  quickly,  and  rooms/'  cried  Adrian. 

**  At  this  hour  of  midnight!  It  is  not  possible!  ''  and  he 
was  about  to  slam  the  door  in  their  faces. 

Then  the  Commander  rose  in  his  might.  He  pushed  the 
door  sharply  open,  pointed  upstairs  and  said  sternly,  '*  Go 
and  tell  the  manager  to  come  down  at  once !  ' ' 

The  dazed  porter  comprehended  and  fled  up  the  stair- 
case, and  after  what  seemed  an  age,  he  came  back  and  said 
sulkily,  **  There  are  but  two  beds  left  in  the  house.  These 
you  can  have ;  but  supper,  no !  ' ' 

As  the  Other-one  crawled,  with  aching  bones,  into  her  hard 
bed,  supperless  and  unutterably  weary,  she  murmured, 
**  Automobiling,  even  in  sunny  Africa,  is  not  all  joy!'' 


[292] 


CHAPTER  XX 

TO  TUNIS  BY  BONE  AND  LA  CALLE;   WITH   A   VISIT   TO  HAM  MAM 
MESKOUTINE  AND  TO  THE  RUINS  OP  BULLA  REGIA  AND  DOUGGA. 

THE  next  morning,  all  were  refreshed  by  a  night *s  sleep, 
and  the  Commander  unfolded  his  plans  for  the  next  few 
days*  campaign  to  the  Other-one,  while  they  were  taking  their 
coffee. 

**  I  had  thought  of  going  more  directly  to  Tunis  from  here, 
by  Souk-Ahres;  for  it  is  said  the  road  is  pretty  good  and 
the  mountain  scenery  grand ;  but  now,  I  have  decided  to  visit 
the  petrified  springs  of  Hamraam  Meskoutine  first,  and  to  go 
by  Bone  and  La  Calle  to  Tunis,**  said  he. 

So  they  were  off  after  luncheon  that  day,  going  to  Tiragad 
only  for  the  night,  a  matter  of  thirty-seven  kilometres  only. 
They  wished  for  a  last  look  at  the  interesting  ruins  of  the 
ancient  Thamugadi  and  they  went  to  see  them  by  the  light  of 
the  setting  sun.  Great  banks  of  gilded  clouds  were  piled  up 
in  the  western  sky.  The  Two  sat  down  on  the  highest  part  of 
the  ruined  theatre.  Again  they  looked  over  the  forests  of 
columns  and  the  great  Arch  of  Trajan,  golden  in  the  late  after- 
noon sun  and  seeming  more  majestic  than  ever.  At  the  south- 
east the  highest  peak  of  the  Aurls  —  Chelia — was  a  deep 
blue  from  the  cloud  shadows ;  while  a  high  peak  of  the  Batna 
Mountains  shot  up  like  a  misty  arrow  against  a  vivid  amber 
sky  which  showed  through  a  wide  rift  in  the  clouds  at  the 
west. 

The  Other-one  looked  at  the  Aures  Mountains  with  a  regret- 
ful sigh. 

**  Biskra  and  the  Desert  lie  far  down  beyond  them,'*  she 
said. 

There  was  a  clear  blue  sky,  except  for  a  few  trailing  clouds 
across  the  mountains,  when  they  left  Timgad  at  the  foot  of 

[293] 


A   MOTOR    FLIGHT 

the  Aures.  The  air  was  crystal  clear  from  dust,  and  the 
larks  were  rising  everywhere  on  the  plains  with  liquid 
trills.  It  was  a  day  to  be  glad  that  one  was  alive  and  bowl- 
ing over  fine  roads  in  a  smoothly  running  car.  The  Aures, 
at  the  right,  were  streaked  with  snow  and  seemed  a  stern, 
imposing  range,  so  much  sterner  seen  on  their  northern 
slopes  than  when  viewed  from  Biskra,  afar,  with  their  south- 
ern slopes  bathed  in  soft  and  melting  tints.  The  Other-one 
would  not,  at  first,  believe  them  to  be  the  same  range,  but 
the  Commander,  with  his  maps  and  his  unfailing  sense  of 
direction,  convinced  her  much  against  her  will.  Afar,  on 
the  wide  plains  crossed  by  the  road,  the  nomad's  patches  of 
barley  showed,  a  pale  green,  here  in  this  northern  clime,  as 
compared  with  the  rich  tints  of  their  cultivation  in  the 
Desert.  The  picturesque,  red-striped  tents  of  the  Heracta 
—  the  tribe  peopling  this  part  —  dotted  th^  plain,  and  their 
flocks  and  herds,  tended  by  their  shepherds,  gave  a  peace- 
ful and  pastoral  air  to  all  the  scene.  Now  came  a  train  of 
camels,  turning  their  high  heads  contemptuously  from  side 
to  side. 

*'  Now  I  know  why  the  camel  is  so  haughty  and  disdain- 
ful !  ' '  exclaimed  the  Other-one.  ' '  He  owns  the  Desert ;  it 
is  all  his.  He  can  live  on  its  sandy  wastes  without  water; 
its  scrub  gives  him  delicious  food;  he  can  compass  all  its 
distances  without  fatigue  and  he  is  the  color  of  its  sands; 
he  know^  all  its  secrets,  past  and  to  come;  away  from  it, 
he  dies.  Why  should  he  not  be  arrogant  and  disdainful 
when  he  compares  himself  with  other  animals,  human  as 
well!*' 

Now  a  man,  swathed  to  the  eyes  in  his  white  burnous  and 
haik,  a  scarlet  blanket  thrown  across  the  mule  he  rode, 
came  down  the  hill  toward  the  car,  then  turned  quickly  to 
the  side  of  the  road.  A  woman  trailed  after  him,  with  dra- 
peries of  the  most  vivid  magenta  color  caught  at  her  shoul- 
ders with  enormous  silver  pins;  great  hoops  of  silver  in  her 
ears,  and  the  usual  clanking  anklets,  and  wide  braids  drop- 
ping below  her  yellow   headband  —  startling   in   her   bril- 

[294] 


TO  TUNIS 

liance  of  coloring,  like  a  gorgeously  plumaged  bird.  She 
carried  a  browu  baby  on  her  back,  who  looked  like  a  bronze 
idol.  **  Picturesque  though  the  man  is,  he  is  a  lazy  wretch 
to  allow  the  woman  to  trail  along  with  that  heavy  baby! 
Why  doesn't  he  get  off  and  walk?  "  exclaimed  the  Other- 
one  indignantly. 

*'Man  is  a  privileged  being  here,**  returned  the  Com- 
mander, *  *  but  see  how  lavish  he  has  been  in  presents  of 
jewellery  to  her;  I  wish  I  could  buy  those  fibulae.** 

But  the  people  were  quickly  gone  from  view,  and  the 
car  hummed  on.  Long  ranges  of  velvety  brown  hills  shut 
off  the  view  of  the  Aures  for  a  while.  The  road  now  ran 
across  numerous  small  streams  which  come  from  the  moun- 
tains and  abundantly  water  this  valley.  Near  noon  the 
car  passed  through  the  little,  dismal,  newly  laid-out  town 
they  had  passed  before,  where  the  colonists,  few  in  number, 
were  at  work  and  Arabs  lounged,  as  usual,  in  the  little  cafe. 
Again  down  to  a  vast  plain,  fairly  alive  with  natives,  flocks, 
herds  of  cattle  and  camels,  while  the  red  tents  dotted  the 
green  like  great  poppies.  The  road  then  ran  up  to  hills 
covered  with  thuyas  or  junipers  and  dark  lentisque  bushes. 
The  travellers  went  rapidly  through  the  wind-swept  town 
of  Khenchella,  with  Arabs  everywhere  in  the  streets  and 
many  fondouks  for  the  camels,  whose  snarls  could  be  heard 
from  within  them. 

The  Aures  had  become  misty  outlines  in  the  distance  when 
the  car  rolled  into  Ain  Beida,  and  the  party  descended  to 
lunch  at  the  dirty  little  hotel,  whence  a  frowsy-headed 
waiter  rushed  out  and  welcomed  them  with  great  effusion. 
There  was  a  beautiful  garden  across  from  the  inn,  with 
graceful  pepper-trees  and  beds  of  great  blue  iris  upon 
which  the  Other-one  kept  her  gaze  while  eating,  not  daring 
to  look,  after  the  first  glance  across  the  little  cafiy  into  the 
shed-like  kitchen  beyond,  where  a  gnome,  in  a  soiled  white 
cap,  was  cooking  over  a  rusty  stove.  She  feared  lest  her 
appetite  for  the  India-rubber  steak  and  the  cast-iron  chicken 
would  flee. 

[295] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

**  How  cold  it  is  here!  *'  she  exclaimed,  shivering,  **  after 
the  delicious  warmth  and  sun  at  Biskra;  and  this  place  is 
insupportable,  too,  after  that  green  oasis  of  a  hotel  there, 
so  clean  and  comfortable." 

*  *  No  wonder  you  are  cold !  Do  you  know  how  high  Ain 
Beida  is?"  asked  the  Commander.  **  We  were  a  little 
higher  at  Timgad,  which  is  3,546  feet,  and  have  come  down 
here  to  3,200  feet.  Biskra  is  only  390  feet  about  sea  level. 
We  are  on  the  high  plateaux  now." 

Leaving  Ain  Beida,  they  crossed  a  plain  with  a  great 
mountain  lying  along  the  west  like  an  enormous  camel  rest- 
ing, its  long  neck  on  the  earth.  The  clouds  were  now  mount- 
ing from  the  east  and  trailing  sometimes  across  the  sun, 
giving  glorious  effects  of  light  and  shade  on  the  green 
plain.  The  road  was  always  good,  until  it  came  near  to 
a  mining  town  lying  off  to  one  side,  on  the  hill ;  from  which 
a  track  ran  into  the  dusty,  busy  town  of  Montcalm. 
Here  were  many  tents  of  nomads  on  the  border  of  the 
place;  and  loaded  teams,  camels,  and  donkeys  coming  in. 
Around  the  market-place  were  long  bales  of  alfa,  or  esparto 
grass,  ready  for  shipping;  and  all  was  busy  activity  every- 
where. From  here  to  Oued  Zenati  the  road  was  so  bad, 
so  full  of  ruts  and  stones,  that  the  Commander's  patience 
was  sorely  tried.  They  ran  out  of  the  town  and  turned  to 
the  right,  up  through  a  beautiful  avenue  of  spring-green 
ash-trees. 

Trees  had  been  so  scanty  the  last  few  days  of  their  trav- 
els over  the  plains,  that  it  was  a  pleasant  surprise  to  find 
so  luxuriant  a  growth  here  and  at  Bordj-Sabbath,  farther 
on,  where  were  groves  of  pines  and  another  long  avenue  of 
ash-trees.  They  saw  the  old  fort,  a  hordj,  or  fortified  car- 
avansary, that  gives  the  town  its  name.  The  valley  nar- 
rowed from  here  on  and  the  scenery  grew  wilder.  The  hills 
were  covered  with  lentisque  bushes  and  the  wild  olive 
flourished.  Great  rocks  thrust  themselves  out  in  ledges  — 
masses  of  gray  which,  with  the  black  of  the  forests  on 
the   mountain   flanks,   gave  the   country   a  melancholy   air. 

[  296  ] 


TO  TUNIS 

Patches  of  squill,  with  its  shiny  large  leaves,  its  great, 
brown  bulbs  often  denuded  of  soil,  grew  in  open  spaces; 
and  the  now  familiar  asphodel  raised  its  pale,  pinky  blos- 
soms on  waste  places.  Often  there  would  be  a  blaze  of 
the  golden  genesta  lighting  up  the  rocky  spaces  as  with  rays 
of  sunlight.  Then  the  craggy  hills  opened  into  a  green  and 
luxuriant  valley,  in  smiling  contrast  to  the  rugged  defiles 
before.  A  few  kilometres  farther  on,  passing  the  road  to 
Guelma  at  the  right,  the  travellers  went  up  an  ascent  and 
came  out  upon  a  region  where  they  saw  jets  of  steam  rising 
in  the  air  in  many  places;  and  many  round  and  conical 
masses  of  corrugated  rock  showed  at  the  right  on  a  plateau. 
Soon  the  car  rolled  up  an  avenue  of  ash-trees  and  came  to 
a  square  having  a  beautiful  garden  with  rows  of  luxuriant 
pepper-trees  and  tropical  palms,  with  lemon-trees  and  orange- 
trees,  their  pale  yellow  and  deep  golden-  fruit,  showing 
amongst  the  dark  green  foliage.  In  one  corner  an  enor- 
mous terebinth-tree  spread  its  giant  branches  and  gave  shel- 
ter to  many  little  coffee  tables  spread  under  its  shade.  Masses 
of  blue  English  iris  were  in  bloom  in  the  garden,  and  there 
were  fascinating  Roman  antiquities  scattered  around — pil- 
lars, capitals,  monuments,  and  several  mutilated  statues. 
Around  the  square  were  white  cottages  of  one  and  two  stories, 
and  they  looked  most  clean  and  inviting. 

When  the  travellers  had  been  shown  their  cheerful  and 
spotless  room,  with  its  gay  chintz  coverings  and  a  veranda 
looking  on  the  garden,  the  lady  sighed  with  content:  **  An- 
other oasis  of  a  hotel!  Let  us  abide  here  a  blissful  month 
and  in  the  charms  of  Hammara  Meskoutine  forget  forever 
the  hotels  of  Tebessa  and  Ain  Beida!  *' 

The  Commander,  unheeding  this  proposition,  suggested,  as 
it  was  yet  early,  that  they  should  go  out  to  see  the  petrified 
cascades  and  whatever  else  there  might  be  of  interest. 

They  set  out  to  view  the  springs  under  the  guidance  of  a 
young  Arab  who  had  witnessed  their  arrival  and  came  at 
once  to  offer  his  services  with  great  joy.  The  boy  led  them 
down  through  a  grove  of  ancient  olive-trees  at  the  back  of 

[297] 


f\~^ 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

their  cottage  to  a  terrace  where  the  air  was  clouded  with  ris- 
ing steam.  A  most  astonishing  sight  met  their  eyes.  On  a 
plateau,  railed  off  from  the  ancient  grove,  they  saw  many 
caldron-like  holes  full  of  a  bubbling,  boiling,  blue  water, 
the  overflow  falling  in  wide  cascades  which,  upon  the  point 
of  rushing  over,  seemed  to  have  been  staid  by  some  magic 
power  and  petrified  to  a  mass  of  stilled  rapids,  in  every  color 
imaginable.  The  Commander  dipped  his  hand  in  the  small 
conduits  of  stone  that  ran  from  the  boiling  pools  toward 
the  bathing-houses,  and  found  them  most  uncomfortably  hot. 
With  the  steam,  the  heat,  and  the  odors,  it  was  a  most 
uncanny  spot.  The  boy  appeared  anxious  that  his  patrons 
should  go  farther  on,  so  following  him  down  a  narrow,  slip- 
pery path  at  one  side,  they  came  to  the  bottom  of  the  hill, 
where  they  could  look  up  the  mass,  rising  over  sixty  feet, 
of  frozen  cascades  —  the  Grand  Cascades,  as  they  are  called. 
Here  is  every  tint  of  rust  color  in  them,  from  a  pallid  tone 
to  a  deep,  dark  red.  In  some  places  there  is  a  mass  of 
dazzling  white  like  coagulated  cream;  then  there  are  shades 
of  gray,  some  warm  and  some  dull  blue,  with  faint  streaks 
of  green  through  them.  It  is  all  very  beautiful,  yet  with  a 
weird,  unearthly  beauty. 

*  *  It  ^s  marvellous  and  stupendous !  ' '  exclaimed  the  Com- 
mander. "  These  effects  are  produced  by  the  bubbling  water 
being  strongly  impregnated  with  lime,  which  is  deposited 
when  the  water  cools,  falling  down  the  rocks.  There  must 
be  much  sulphur  in  it  too,  judging  from  the  odor  in  the  air 
and  some  of  the  colors  of  the  petrifactions.  *' 

^'  Now  for  the  practical  part  from  the  guide-book,''  said 
the  Other-one,  ' '  as  this  Arab  can  tell  us  nothing. ' ' 

**  These  waters,  by  the  experiments  of  the  military  authorities  for 
the  last  sixty  years,  have  proved  very  efficacious  in  cases  of  rheumatism, 
affections  of  the  joints,  sprains,  neuralgia,  partial  paralysis,  fevers, 
chronic  bronchitis,  and  even  in  localized  tuberculosis.  There  are  twenty 
sources  from  which  the  springs  of  Hammam  Meskoutine  rise.  All  of 
these  are  hot,  but  vary  in  temperature  according  to  their  position  and 
the  overflow  of  water.  The  greater  the  quantity,  the  higher  the  temper- 
ature. The  spring  at  the  foot  of  the  bridge  on  the  Guelma  road  is  full 
of  iron,  but  not  so  hot ;   when  cooled,  it  is  used  for  drinking.     .     .     . 

[298] 


5, 

i 

» '  ml 

THE    PETRIFIED   CASCADES    AT  HAM  MAM    MKSKOUTINE 


THE  "  AKAB  MAHKIAGE  "AT  HAM.>iA.>l   MKSKuUTlNE 
—PETRIFIED  CONES 


TO  TUNIS 

The  temperature  of  this  Grand  Cascade  is  about  205  degrees  Fahrenheit, 
which  is  a  higher  temperature  than  any  of  the  mineral  waters  in  Europe, 
and  only  equalled  by  the  Geysers  in  Iceland,  New  Zealand,  and  the 
Philippine  Islands.  It  seems  that  these  waters  were  known  and  em- 
ployed at  a  very  remote  antiquity,  but  the  oldest  monuments  yet  dis- 
covered date  from  the  Punic  period.  Of  the  Boman  occupation  there 
are  ample  traces." 

It  was  a  sylvan  spot  where  they  were.  A  little  crystal 
stream  flowed  along  at  the  foot  of  the  brilliant  cascades  with 
their  gamut  of  color.  Old  olive-trees  with  gnarled  trunks 
cast  a  shade  around.  The  grass  on  the  slopes  of  the  hills 
nearby  was  powdered  with  daisies,  and  the  wild  marigolds 
made  spots  like  sunlight.  The  air  was  fresh  and  suave;  the 
faint  odor  of  sulphur  it  held,  not  disagreeable.  Some  little 
gray  birds  flew  twittering  down  to  the  rocky  border  of  the 
stream.  Suddenly  some  gurgling,  clucking  notes  were  heard, 
seeming  to  come  from  a  tree  by  the  stream.  The  Other-one 
peered  into  the  branches,  trying  to  locate  the  birds,  but  they 
were  too  shy,  and  hid  themselves  in  the  foliage.  **  It  sounds 
like  our  cuckoo  which  we  hear  in  deep  woods  sometimes  on 
hot  days.**  The  notes  were  repeated  and  grew  into  a  chorus. 
**  Oh,  I  wish  I  could  find  out  what  they  are  and  what  they 
look  like!  **  exclaimed  the  Lady. 

Meantime  the  Commander  had  gone  down  the  slope  from 
the  path  to  test  the  warmth  of  the  little  stream.  **  It  is 
deliciously  hot!  **  he  called  out.  **  Come  down  here  and  see 
your  birds.** 

She  hastened  down  and  saw,  on  the  rocks  along  the  bank 
and  popping  their  black  heads  out  of  the  water,  a  number  of 
little  frogs,  the  smallest  she  had  ever  seen ;  so  small  that  she 
could  not  believe  that  they  had  produced  the  sonorous  gur- 
gling she  had  just  heard,  until  she  saw  them  hopping  joy- 
ously from  stone  to  stone  and  emitting  their  astonishing 
sounds. 

The  Arab  boy  had  been  growing  restive;  he  uttered  the 
words  '*  Arab  marriage  **  several  times,  and  pointed  up  the 
hill. 

**  Oh,  yes,  I  know  what  he  means,  and  as  we  walk  along 

[299] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

I  will  tell  you  the  legend  which  the  Arabs  firmly  believe  to 
be  true,  and  because  of  which  they  call  these  springs,  Ilam- 
mam  Meskoutine,  or  the  *  accursed  baths/  "  said  the  Lady. 

They  followed  the  boy  up  a  path  to  the  left,  which  led  by 
a  large  basin  or  reservoir  filled  with  water  running  from  the 
boiling  springs,  and  into  which  they  plunged  their  hands  but 
withdrew  them  more  quickly. 

**  The  legend  is  this:  Once  upon  a  time,  near  here,  there 
lived  a  very  wealthy  sheik  named  Ali.  He  had  a  sister,  beau- 
tiful as  the  dawn,  whom  he  loved  to  distraction.  In  order 
that  no  other  man  might  possess  her,  he  resolved  to  marry 
her  himself,  in  spite  of  the  protestations  of  his  father  and 
friends,  many  of  whom  he  caused  to  have  their  heads  struck 
off  in  front  of  his  tent.  Extensive  preparations  were  made 
for  the  wedding,  and  a  big  feast  was  prepared.  When  the 
celebration  of  the  marriage  drew  near  the  end,  there  came  a 
thick  blackness  over  all  the  land,  and  a  terrific  earthquake 
made  the  earth  tremble  and  open.  Flames  and  demons  came 
out  of  the  fissures;  loud  thunder  rolled,  and  a  great  tempest 
raged.  At  that  moment,  the  whole  company  turned  to  stone 
— the  wicked  sheik,  his  bride  Ourida,  the  Cadi  who  married 
them  and  who  can  be  easily  identified  by  his  turban,  the 
father  and  mother  who  had  protested,  and  all  the  friends ;  the 
camel  laden  with  the  bridal  gifts,  and  even  the  cous-cous  left 
over  from  the  feast.  Allah,  in  his  anger,  had  turned  all  to 
stone,  because  they  would  not  obey  the  laws  of  his  Prophet: 
so  the  smoke  ever  rises  from  the  great  fires  below,  a  warning 
to  all  evildoers  of  the  punishment  that  awaits  such  ones.  Now, 
if  you  do  not  believe  all  this  story,  why,  thei'e  is  the  proof, '* 
said  the  Lady,  pointing  to  some  great  cones  out  on  the  ter- 
race above  the  cascades  where  the  guide  had  just  led  them. 
Indeed  all  could  be  identified  in  the  great  cones,  fourteen  to 
twenty  feet  high,  many  of  them:  the  Cadi,  with  his  turban, 
the  married  pair  in  a  close  embrace,  the  bride  in  her  long 
flowing  mantle.  There  were  the  father  and  mother,  and  the 
smaller  cones  were  the  wedding  guests,  all  decorated  with 
wreaths  of  flowers  and  grasses. 

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TO   TUNIS 

**  It  does  not  require  much  imagination  to  fancy  all  alive 
and  the  wedding  festivities  going  on.  There  is  the  steam 
arising  from  the  cous-cous,  and  I  can  even  hear  the  music/* 
said  the  Lady,  as  the  plaintive  minor  tones  of  an  Arab  pipe 
made  itself  heard,  with  the  beating  of  tom-toms,  from  down 
the  road. 

**  These  cones,  scattered  everywhere  here,  are  certainly  very 
curious,*'  said  the  Commander,  and  then  he  added, —  his 
active  mind  always  seeking  a  solution  for  every  problem  pre- 
sented —  *  *  these  must  be  formed  by  the  water  rising  above 
the  rock,  depositing  a  circle  of  lime,  then  a  second  and  a 
third,  and  so  on,  until  the  water  has  not  sufficient  force  to 
reach  the  top,  which  closes  over,  and  the  spring  seeks  another 
vent;  and  so  it  goes  on.  See!  on  some  of  those  where  earth 
and  dust  have  collected,  there  are  shrubs  and  vines  whose 
seeds  have  been  dropped  by  the  birds,  or  blown  in  by  the 
wind.** 

**  They  look  like  enormous  flower-pots,**  said  the  Other-one. 
'*  Let  us  walk  on  across  the  terrace  beyond  and  look  down 
where  the  River  Chedaker  has  cut  its  way  through,  in  which 
the  water  of  the  springs  flows.  I  read  that  over  the  hills,  about 
two  kilometres  from  here,  there  is  a  subterranean  lake  which 
is  worth  visiting,  for  those  who  have  plenty  of  time  (conse- 
quently, those  who  are  not  motorists).  It  is  a  hundred  and 
fifty  feet  long  and  ninety-nine  feet  wide.  It  came  to  view 
after  a  great  storm  some  twenty  years  ago,  when  the  earth 
fell  in  with  a  terrific  rumbling,  showing  an  entrance  to  a 
cavern.  It  is  dark  as  night  there  even  at  midday,  and  the 
Arabs  take  one  in  with  torches,  and  around  it  in  a  boat.  It 
must  be  rather  a  lugubrious  boat-ride,  however.** 

The  clouds  had  been  gathering  darkly  above  Djebel-Debar, 
making  its  timbered  slopes  black  under  their  shadows,  and 
the  whole  place  around  seemed  more  weird  as  the  rain  began  to 
descend,  scattering  some  picnic  parties  who  had  been  finishing 
the  remnants  of  their  noon  repast  with  much  apparent  gusto. 
Our  friends  fled  —  the  young  Arab  after  them,  fearful  of 
losing  his  fee  —  to  their  deliciously  clean  rooms  in  the  white 

[301] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

cottage,  where  their  travelling  household  gods  were  installed 
for  the  night.  After  retiring  they  heard  in  the  stillness, 
through  their  open  windows,  the  clarion  notes  of  the  joyous 
frogs  in  their  warm  baths,  seemingly  undismayed  by  the  fall- 
ing rain. 

When  the  Motorists  left  Hammam  Meskoutine  on  the  road 
for  Bone  the  next  morning,  the  rain  had  ceased,  but  the  clouds 
were  piled  in  great  cottony  masses  above  the  dark  mountains. 
The  sky  seen  through  great  rents  was  of  that  rich,  translucent 
blue  that  no  sky  but  that  of  Africa  ever  shows.  The  plains 
were  clothed  with  a  rich  rug  of  flowers,  refreshed  by  the  rain. 

At  Guelma,  nineteen  kilometres  from  the  Springs,  once  the 
ancient  and  flourishing  town  of  Calama  (one  of  its  claims 
to  interest  being  that  Possidius,  the  biographer  of  St.  Augus- 
tine, was  born  there),  the  Commander  directed  the  chauffeur 
to  stop  the  car  near  the  pretty  public  garden,  and  the  trav- 
ellers descended  to  take  a  walk  through  its  flowery  precincts 
and  to  cast  a  glance  at  some  of  the  Roman  remains  there,  dis- 
covered at  Guelma,  and  also  some  brought  from  the  neigh- 
boring towns  of  Announa-  and  Khamessa,  ancient  Roman 
cities  where  excavations  had  been  going  on.  These  antique 
statues  —  noseless,  armless,  and  legless,  mere  torsos,  some  of 
them  were  odd  to  see  —  a  statue  of  Fortune;  a  statue  of  a 
Roman  in  a  toga;  heads  of  Yenus  and  of  Septimus  Severus 
on  a  lintel  supported  by  two  antique  columns;  a  colossal 
statue  of  Jupiter  in  a  sort  of  chapel;  a  statue  of  Diana  in 
the  midst  of  the  luxuriant  flower-beds,  which  contrasted  with 
the  dignified,  stern,  and  severe  lines  of  the  antiques  and  their 
deep  creamy  coloring;  but  more  startling  was  the  contrast 
between  them  and  a  modern  French  Venus  on  a  high  pedes- 
tal occupying  a  prominent  place  in  the  garden,  with  the 
smirking  face  of  the  model  and  with  voluptuous  and  heavy 
outlines  in  the  most  garish  white  marble.  The  ancient  statues 
seemed  to  look  reproachfully  and  sadly  at  it,  as  if  asking 
themselves  the  question,  *'  Is  this  what  modern  Art  has 
come  to?  '* 

The  Commander  decided  to  take  the  longer  road  to  Bone 

[  302  ] 


TO   TUNIS 

(which,  just  beyond  the  town,  turns  to  the  left,  and  is  the 
Phillippeville  route)  in  order  that  he  might  pass  the  Lake 
Fetzara.  They  crossed  the  Seybouse,  which  **  is,  of  all  the 
Algerian  rivers,  the  one  which  has  the  most  constant  flow, 
and  which,  as  it  approaches  the  sea,  has  most  the  appearance 
of  a  real  river,  its  basin  very  well  watered  by  the  abundant 
rains  which  fall  in  that  region.**  The  travellers  thought  it 
here  rather  a  sullen,  muddy-looking  stream.  The  road  went 
up  over  hills  and  through  olive  groves,  northwest  to  Auri- 
beau,  then  northeast  beyond  some  great  vineyards,  and  came 
out  on  a  vast  plain  stretching  away  to  the  Lake  Fetzara  in 
the  distance,  beyond  which  were  misty  outlines  of  mountains. 
On  this  plain  were  countless  herds  of  cattle  and  flocks  of  sheep 
feeding,  guarded  by  shepherds  whose  huts,  of  reeds  and  thatch, 
were  scattered  in  clusters  here  and  there.  The  race  of  cattle 
in  this  section  is  celebrated  as  the  best  in  Algeria  or  Tunisia. 
Small  of  size  but  enduring  fatigue  and  easy  to  fatten,  they 
take  their  name  from  the  town  of  Guelma. 

The  wide  and  marshy  extent  of  plain  was  a  mosaic  of 
masses  of  flowers,  among  which  predominated  the  golden  yel- 
low and  orange  of  marigolds,  with  the  wild  fennel  {Ferula 
communis)  lifting  its  great  balls  —  yellow  also.  Clouds  of 
the  least-white-crane  flew  back  and  forth  from  the  distant 
lake,  which  showed  a  gleam  like  dull  silver,  in  the  distance. 

*  *  It  must  be  a  frightfully  unhealthy  country,  with  all  this 
marshy  expanse ;  yet  how  pastoral  and  peaceful  it  all  looks !  *  * 
said  the  Lady. 

The  road  beyond  lay  through  long  groves  of  eucalyptus 
trees,  some  of  them  enormous  in  size.  There  must  have  once 
been  a  village,  for  there  were  the  tumbled  down  remains  of 
modern  houses  and  a  melancholy-looking  bakery  which  was 
also  going  to  ruin. 

**  The  inhabitants  must  have  all  died  of  malaria,**  observed 
the  Commander ;  for  no  one  was  to  be  seen  but  three  or  four 
of  the  ubiquitous  Arabs  lounging  in  a  ruined  doorway.  The 
car,  after  passing  the  luxuriant  groves,  neared  the  lake  where 
the  least-white-crane  were  circling  like  snow-flurries;  there 

[303] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

were  flocks  of  ducks  resting  on  the  water,  and  a  cloud  of 
busy,  bronze-blue  swallows  with  salmon-tinted  breasts, 
dipped  back  and  forth  from  the  water-side. 

It  was  yet  early  in  the  afternoon  (for  Bone  is  only 
one  hundred  and  eight  kilometres  from  Guelma  by  the  long 
route)  when  they  drew  near  to  the  white  city,  lying  on 
the  pine-clad  terraces  of  the  foothills  of  the  mountain 
Edough,  and  when  they  were  still  nearer,  a  big  white  church 
with  spires  stood  out  on  the  right,  on  a  green  hill. 

'*  That  must  be  the  basilica  erected  to  the  memory  of  St. 
Augustine,"  said  the  Other-one,  *'  and  that  is  what  makes 
Bone,  the  ancient  Hippone,  and  its  surroundings,  so  interest- 
ing ;  for  it  is  all  so  connected  with  the  history  of  that  wonder- 
ful man.  But  from  what  I  read  the  town  itself  is  a  modern 
French  city  with  a  fine  avenue  of  trees  —  the  Cours- Jerome 
Bertagna.  It  has  an  uninteresting  old  Arab  town  with  a  plain 
mosque.  The  market,  however,  is  a  very  lively  one  in  the 
morning.  We  have  only  to  concern  ourselves  with  the  ruins 
of  Hippone,  which  are  just  outside  of  the  modern  city,  and 
with  memories  of  St.  Augustine.  You  know  he  was  bishop 
here  for  forty  years,  from  390  A.  D.  Here,  too,  he  wrote  those 
'  Confessions,*  and  *  The  City  of  God,'  which  are  so 
celebrated. '  * 

**  Yes,  I  know,  and  that  he  died  here  in  430  during  the 
siege  of  the  city  by  the  Vandals. '  * 

While  they  were  talking,  the  motor  had  entered  the  suburbs 
of  Bone  and,  a  short  distance  from  the  walls,  they  passed  a 
large  gate  opening  into  a  garden  and  small  property;  over 
the  gate  was  inscribed  * '  Kuins  of  Hippone. '  *  They  rang  at  the 
gate  and  the  custodian  hastened  to  let  them  in.  He  led 
the  way  through  a  path  bordered  with  luxuriant  bushes  of 
pink  roses  to  the  back,  where  the  debris  of  excavation  could 
be  seen.  Some  feet  below,  the  original  level  was  covered  with 
mosaics,  broken  columns,  and  low  arches  of  stone ;  the  remains 
of  elegant  public  or  private  baths  in  Roman  houses.  Some 
of  the  mosaics  are  very  fine,  one  with  Venus  and  the  Nereids ; 
and  a  personification  of  the  Year,  surrounded  by  musicians 

[304] 


TO   TUNIS 

and  theatrical  masques,  all  very  well  preserved,  with  colors 
fresh  and  vivid.  Here,  in  this  place  owned  by  a  Mr.  Dufour, 
at  one  side  is  a  Phoenician  wall  constructed  of  huge  blocks  of 
stone,  ashlar-cut,  far  below  the  soil  of  the  Roman  house. 
There  were  also  some  more  pillars  and  debris  of  what  was 
considered  to  have  been  an  early  Christian  basilica.  Over  the 
walls,  beyond  this  little  estate,  can  be  seen,  also  the  debris 
of  excavations;  and  near  a  hill  crowned  with  olives,  are 
Roman  reservoirs  which  have  been  restored  and  now  supply 
Bone  with  water. 

All  was  very  unsatisfactory,  however,  regarding  any  def- 
inite knowledge  that  the  travellers  could  get  about  the 
antique  city. 

A  very  picturesque  view  of  the  new  Cathedral  could  be 
seen  through  an  opening  in  the  trees  at  the  back  of  the  gar- 
den, a  white  building  crowning  the  green  slope  of  a  hill.  But 
the  choicest  things  of  the  excavations,  according  to  the  cus- 
todian, were  the  Punic  tombs  at  the  front  of  the  Roman  house, 
or  baths.  Through  the  soil  cut  away  could  be  seen  some 
rows  of  the  tombs,  each  composed  of  three  slabs  of  tufa,  form- 
ing a  triangular  hole,  through  which  could  be  seen  some 
discolored  skulls  protruding  in  rather  a  disturbing  way. 

*  *  I  wish  we  might  see  the  monument  erected  to  St.  Augus- 
tine in  1840.  Is  it  far  from  heret  "  the  Lady  asked  the  cus- 
todian. 

**  No,  madame.  Do  not  cross  the  Roman  bridge,  as  you 
must  to  go  to  town,  but  keep  on  to  a  road  that  turns  up  the 
hill;  there  you  will  find  it,  not  far  from  the  great  basilica.** 

So  they  decided,  as  there  was  yet  a  little  time  before  sun- 
set, to  go  up  to  the  monument.  The  custodian,  grateful  for 
the  Commander  's  generous  fee,  bowed  them  out  of  the  gate, 
leaving  in  the  Other-one  *s  hand  a  bunch  of  the  beautiful  pink 
roses.  They  went  up,  as  directed,  and  found,  under  some 
ancient  olive-trees,  a  small  and  simple  statuette  on  a  pedestal 
surrounded  by  an  iron  fence.  The  steps  of  marble  leading 
up  to  it  were  cut  with  many  names,  those  of  pious  pilgrims, 
probably,  who  wished  to  leave  some  record  of  their  pilgrimage. 

[305] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

"  I  believe  there  are  an  arm  and  some  other  bones  of  the 
saint  interred  here,"  said  the  Other-one.  ''  St.  Augustine 
was  first  buried  in  the  Basilica  of  Hippone,  but  later  his 
remains  were  taken  to  Cagliari  and  kept  there  for  two  hun- 
dred years ;  then  they  were  removed  to  Pavia,  where  they  are 
now,  in  the  Cathedral,  but  the  right  arm  of  St.  Augustine 
was  taken  and  brought  here.  This  spot  was  chosen  for  erec- 
ing  this  monument,  they  say,  because  it  was  believed  to  have 
been  the  site  of  the  monastery  where  St.  Augustine  wrote 
his  *  Confessions'  and  his  '  City  of  God.'  They  always 
celebrate  here  a  religious  service  on  the  anniversary  of  his 
death.'' 

It  was  certainly  an  impressive  place,  with  the  old  olives, 
the  extended  view  and  the  reminder  of  the  great  Father  of 
the  Church.  The  Two  went  farther  up  to  the  big  new  basilica 
above,  with  its  capital  and  high  spires.  They  stepped  inside 
a  moment,  but  it  all  looked  new  and  garish  in  spite  of  the 
fine  rose-colored  granite  columns  which  the  custodian  said 
were  brought  from  Corsica,  and  the  high  altar  of  various 
African  marbles.  Outside,  they  lingered  for  the  glorious 
view,  down  over  the  ruins  of  ancient  Hippone, —  away  beyond 
to  the  blue  sea,  to  white,  modern  Bone  rising  in  terraces  on 
a  low  green  hill  running  down  to  it,  and  in  the  background, 
dark  Mount  Edough  rising  into  the  west  against  the  mass  of 
rose-tinted  clouds  which  hung  above  the  setting  sun. 

It  was  late  when  they  rode  into  the  gates  of  the  bright,  gay 
city  of  Bone,  with  its  throngs  of  people  walking  up  and  down 
the  long  main  avenue  of  luxuriant  ficus  trees,  and  the  lights 
twinkling  everywhere.  It  being  Sunday  evening,  the  French 
people  were  all  out  in  gala  attire.  Some  Arabs  in  their  red 
fezes  and  ha'iks,  with  their  burnouses  thrown  around  them, 
threaded  in  and  out  of  the  throng,  with  it,  but  never  of  it. 
The  dusty  and  tired  voyagers  drew  up  at  a  hotel  on  the 
avenue  to  which  the  genial  landlord  welcomed  them  as  if 
they  were  long-lost  patrons,  and  he  gave  them  the  best  he 
had;  and,  as  compared  with  much  that  went  before,  it  was 
very  good  indeed.     They  did  not  linger  long  in  Bone  in  the 

[  306  ] 


TO   TUNIS 

morning;  a  glance  at  the  rather  uninteresting  mosque,  a 
quick  trip  through  the  busy  market  thronged  with  Arabs, 
and  they  climbed  into  their  car. 

The  Commander  directed  the  chauffeur  to  run  down  by 
the  harbor,  so  they  had  a  view  of  the  shipping ;  then  the  road 
ran  along  from  the  sea  and  crossed  the  Seybouse  River  by 
an  iron  bridge.  The  sky  was  somewhat  overcast,  and  the 
great  mountain  of  Edough  looked  sombre,  with  its  dark  for- 
ests. But  the  wayside  was  embroidered  with  the  vivid  blue 
of  the  borage,  and  the  fields  of  wheat  were  aflame  with  scar- 
let poppies.  The  road  went  on  by  the  marshy  Lac  des 
Oiseaux,  and  clouds  of  water-birds  were  rising  from  or  set- 
tling down  upon  it;  the  tall  reeds  on  its  edges  were  waving 
in  the  breeze.  Beyond  this  the  travellers  passed  a  number  of 
native  huts  of  thatch  and  reeds ;  flocks  and  herds  were  feed- 
ing near,  guarded  by  little  half-clad  shepherds.  Some  chil- 
dren ran  out,  clad  in  vivid  red,  and  looking  like  great 
poppies  blown  from  the  wheat  fields  by  the  wind.  Then  came 
Lake  Oubeira,  also  with  colonies  of  busy  water-birds,  and 
extending  to  wooded  hills  beyond. 

Farther  on,  the  road  ran  up  into  a  cork-tree  forest  where, 
under  the  shade  of  the  trees  the  asphodel  with  its  pale  pinky 
blooms  flourished,  flinging  to  the  breeze  its  balsamic  odor. 
Beyond  the  forest  the  hills  were  brown  with  lentisque  bushes, 
and  the  slopes  in  places  were  golden  with  the  genesta.  Then 
the  Motorists  came  down  through  hedges  of  prickly  pears, 
which  guarded  little  estates  where  were  many  fig-trees,  their 
distorted  branches  now  hidden  by  great  green  leaves;  and 
there  were  almond-trees  laden  with  green  nuts,  and  many 
apricot-trees.  The  stained  yellow  houses  showed  through  the 
foliage,  and  there  were  many  small  vineyards.  There  came 
then  a  dazzling  view  of  the  sea,  and  the  rocks  beyond  the  har- 
bor of  La  Calle  were  white  with  the  foam  of  breakers  rolling 
in.  The  car  ran  down  to  the  square  above  the  harbor.  Here 
were  some  discouraged-looking,  wind-buffeted  palm-trees  and 
a  melancholy,  yellow  cathedral  with  very  high  spires.  The 
town  seemed  to  consist  of  this  and  some  low,  yellow  houses, 

[307] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

and  the  French  custom-house,  where  the  Commander  was  to 
get  his  passavant  for  entering  Tunis. 

As  the  Motorists  looked  around,  it  seemed  that  they  had 
entered  another  country.  La  Calle  is  essentially  an  Italian 
town.  Here  the  Arab  element  is  conspicuously  absent;  only 
a  few  men  in  burnouses  lounge  along  the  streets,  but  looking 
so  superior,  with  their  intent,  brown  faces  and  their  pictur- 
esque costumes,  to  the  sodden-looking  sailors  and  fishermen 
who  loiter  on  the  corners  and  by  the  saloons,  or  hang  over 
the  balustrade  above  the  little  harbor.  But  for  these,  the 
town  had  a  deserted  air,  as  if  everybody  were  asleep  or  had 
moved  away.  It  seemed  strange  after  the  bustling  towns  and 
villages,  seething  with  an  abundance  of  life,  through  which 
the  travellers  had  motored  heretofore.  Adrian  stopped  his 
car  in  front  of  the  custom-house  and  went  in  to  see  about 
getting  the  passavant.  He  returned  at  once,  saying  that  the 
head-officer  was  about  going  to  his  second  breakfast  and 
would  not  do  anything  until  after  that. 

' '  How  stupid !  * '  exclaimed  the  Commander.  ' '  It  is  only 
a  little  after  eleven!  We  don't  want  our  lunch  at  this  hour. 
Go  and  tell  him  we  are  in  a  hurry.'' 

^*It's  no  use,  sir!  He  won't  do  a  thing  until  after  he 
eats.     He  is  very  cross  about  it." 

**  Let 's  take  a  walk,  then,  down  by  the  rocks  and  look  at 
the  sea  dashing  on  them;  then  get  our  luncheon,"  said  the 
Lady.  ''  By  that  time  the  famished  officer  will  have  gorged 
himself  into  good  nature." 

So  they  crossed  the  square  and  stopped  to  lean  over  the 
stone  coping  and  looked  down  into  the  little  harbor.  It  is  shut 
in  between  a  high  hill  running  down  to  the  water  (which 
cragged  mass  of  rock  has  an  old  fort  on  it)  and  the  mass  of 
pale  yellow  houses  built  upon  what  was  probably  once  a  mass 
of  rock,  and  has  a  narrow  quay  running  along  above  the  har- 
bor. The  short  opening  between  showed  the  breakers  roll- 
ing in  and  dashing  against  the  rocks  at  the  foot  of  the  hill, 
but  the  water  inside  was  calm.  Below  were  some  fishing  boats 
drawn  up ;  some  had  piles  of  brown  nets  on  them,  which  some 

[308] 


TO  TUNIS 

sailors  were  pulling  out  to  dry,  while  other  ancient  mariners 
smoked  vigorously  over  some  nets  they  were  mending. 

**  Do  you  know,'*  said  the  Commander,  **  that  once  this 
was  one  of  the  most  important  places  for  the  fishing  of  coral, 
which  was  then  very  abundant  around  here?  Now  I  believe 
there  is  scarcely  a  boat  engaged  in  it.** 

When  it  was  decided  that  the  time  for  luncheon  had  come 
they  walked  up  to  the  plain  little  hotel  on  one  of  the  streets 
beyond  the  square.  The  Lady  gave  one  look  into  the  dark 
and  dirty  dining-room  and  at  the  table  shown  them  by  the 
door,  with  a  soiled  table-cloth  and  a  superannuated  oil  and 
vinegar  cruet  that  must  have  been  a  relic  of  the  coral  fishery 
times.  She  said  to  the  Commander,  **  If  you  please,  I  think 
I  can  lunch  sumptuously  on  the  biscuits  and  chocolate  which 
you  have  been  so  wise  as  to  provide  always,  since  our  day 
over  the  Col  de  Sfa.** 

The  Commander  smiled  sarcastically,  muttered  something 
about  fastidious  travellers,  but  gave  the  desired  permission; 
80  the  Lady  ate  her  modest  luncheon  in  the  motor  car,  about 
which  some  dirty  and  ragged  little  Italians,  with  a  sprink- 
ling of  small  Arabs,  gathered  as  closely  as  they  dared  and 
watched  each  mouthful;  while  an  important  Arab  boy  in  a 
long,  dirty,  white,  shirt-like  garment  and  a  red  fez  stuck 
well  back  on  his  head,  marched  before  the  car,  flecking  at  the 
small  gamins  with  the  Commander's  whip  which  had  been 
given  to  him  with  instructions  to  ward  off  attacks  on  the  car, 
during  the  time  the  chauffeur  ate  his  luncheon.  When  it 
was  considered  that  time  enough  had  been  given  the  official, 
Adrian  sought  him  and  found  him  in  an  amiable  frame  of 
mind,  so  that  he  condescended  to  set  about  making  out  the 
papers.  He  consumed,  however,  so  much  time,  that  the  Com- 
mander sent  Adrian  in  several  times  to  hurry  him  up.  These 
invasions  produced  no  effect,  and  he  kept  on  the  even  tenor 
of  his  way. 

But  even  a  custom-house  officer  will  get  through  some  time. 
At  last  all  was  ready,  and  they  went  gladly  away  up  the 
hills,  leaving  sleepy  La  Calle  by  the  blue  sea  fringed  with 

[309] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

the  foam  of  the  waves  breaking  over  the  jagged  rocks.  The 
road  wound  up  by  long  curves  and  entered  a  great  forest  of 
cork-trees,  with  many  fine  chestnut-oaks.  Sometimes,  when 
the  road  dipped  down,  there  were  hollows  wet  from  the 
mountains  springs;  here  grew  colonies  of  yellow  iris  and 
masses  of  great  ferns.  At  length  the  boundary  line  was 
reached,  marked  by  a  stone  set  up  on  the  right  of  the  road 
with  a  round  heap  of  rocks  near, —  the  boundary  line  between 
Algeria  and  Tunisia.  Five  kilometres  farther  on,  the  Tunisian 
custom-house  came  in  sight  —  a  small  square  Turkish-looking 
building,  having  turrets  with  slits  for  observation  on  the  four 
corners.  One  or  two  officials  with  red  fezes  were  lounging 
near  the  door,  but  became  quickly  alert  as  the  car  approached. 

While  the  chauffeur  went  in  to  attend  to  the  papers  the 
Commander  unfolded  his  map,  studying  it  attentively  a  few 
moments,  then  said  to  the  Lady : 

*  *  Instead  of  going  from  here  down  to  Tabarca  by  the 
shorter  route,  we  will  go  by  Ain-Draham  and  Souk-el- Arba, 
near  which  place  are  the  ruins  of  Bulla  Regia,  where  they 
have  been  lately  excavating.  We  can  stop  overnight  at  Beja, 
and  from  there  it  is  but  a  short  distance  to  Dougga  (Tebour- 
souk).  There  are  the  most  important  Roman  ruins  in  Tuni- 
sia. We  can  thus  get  to  Tunis  easily  that  night,  and  also  see 
two  important  places  without  making  especial  excursions  from 
there  afterwards.** 

**  From  our  guide-book,"  said  the  Other-one,  *'  I  find  we 
now  are  onHhe  borders  of  Kroumiri,  so  called  from  a  tribe 
inhabiting  this  region.  *  It  is  one  of  the  most  attractive  dis- 
tricts of  this  country,  covered  with  beautiful  forests.  It 
extends  from  Tabarca,  on  the  coast,  about  fifty  kilometres 
in  a  southerly  direction.  Little  was  known  about  the  Krou- 
mirs  until  the  French  occupation,  except  that  they  led  an 
independent  life,  resisting  all  attempts  at  subjection,  and 
plundering  with  equal  impartiality  the  districts  on  both  sides 
of  them.  The  subjection  of  this  people  was  one  of  the  excuses 
for  the  French  occupation  of  Tunisia ;  and  now  this  once  inac- 
cessible region  is  covered  with  good  roads,  is  perfectly  safe 

[  310  1 


TO  TUNIS 

for  travellers,  and  the  women  as  well  as  the  men  are  occupied 
with  the  cultivation  of  the  soil. '  ' ' 

Adrian  now  came  out  with  a  pleased  smile,  * '  It  is  all  over, 
sir;  it  has  taken  only  a  few  minutes.'* 

*  *  Good  I  *  *  exclaimed  the  Commander,  '  *  now  we  are  really 
off.'' 

He  returned  the  polite  salutation  of  the  officer  who  came 
out  to  stare  at  the  motor,  and  the  car  was  soon  moving  rapidly 
up  the  hill  through  the  forest  of  great  cork-oaks,  magnificent 
chestnut-oaks  and  zeens  {Qucrcus  Mirheckii)^  with  some  ash- 
trees,  which  were  now  in  their  full,  graceful  foliage.  Look- 
ing back  through  openings  in  the  forest  as  the  road  curved 
up  the  pass,  they  could  see,  far  below,  the  green  smiling 
valleys,  the  sheen  of  Lake  Obeira  near  La  Calle,  and  the 
intense  blue  of  the  sea.  Reaching  the  Col  des  Ruines,  the 
forest  shut  away  again,  and  they  went  still  up,  to  the  cul- 
minating point  at  Ain-Draham,  a  military  post,  one  thousand 
feet  above  sea-level.  To  the  southeast  of  it  they  saw  a  great 
peak  rising  into  the  sky,  the  Djebel  Bir.  Just  beyond,  a 
glorious,  extended  view  spread  out  before  the  travellers* 
enchanted  eyes,  for  the  forest  opens  wide  here;  far  below, 
green  plains  with  boundaries  of  hills  rising  to  folds  upon 
folds  of  mountains,  dark  now  with  the  overcast  sky  and 
with  thick  forests.  Then  the  road  wound  down,  to  mount 
again  steeply  to  a  deep  forest  where  is  a  little  hotel  for  the 
summer,  called  Camp  de  la  Sante  or  Les  Chhies,  surrounded 
with  some  of  the  largest  and  finest  zeen  oaks  they  had  seen ; 
with  vistas  here  and  there  through  the  woods  down  upon 
the  green  valley  and  wooded  mountains  beyond. 

Then  the  car  slid  down  to  this  green  valley,  and  the  trav- 
ellers saw  fields  upon  fields  of  barley  and  wheat  stretching 
afar,  like  a  rich  green  ocean  ruffled  by  the  breeze  into  silvery 
waves.  Some  five  kilometres  before  arriving  at  Souk-el- Arba, 
whence  they  were  to  turn  northeast  to  Beja  for  the  night, 
there  was  a  small  guide-board,  showing  three  kilometres  for 
Bulla  Regia.  '*  It  seems  to  be  nothing  but  a  country  road,** 
said  the  Commander.    **  Luckily  it  has  not  rained,  or  with 

[311] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

this  soil  and  no  foundation,  we  could  not  get  through  it ;  the 
car  would  sink  in  the  mud.'* 

A  great  craggy  mountain,  gray  and  stern,  seemed  to  be 
guarding  the  entrance  to  the  ruined  city  at  which  the  travel- 
lers soon  arrived.  They  saw,  standing  up  in  the  midst  of 
luxuriant  vegetation,  a  conglomeration  of  ruins  —  arches  and 
columns  scattered  far  and  wide.  As  the  car  stopped,  an 
elderly  Arab  came  toward  them  slowly  and,  pointing  to 
himself,  uttered  the  word  **  guide'*  several  times,  but  the 
Other-one  could  not  make  him  understand  when  she  asked 
what  there  was  to  see  especially  and  how  long  it  would  take 
to  see  it. 

*'  His  French  is  the  most  sketchy,"  she  exclaimed,  **  but 
I  suppose  he  can  lead  us  around,  for  want  of  any  one  else; 
for  there  is  no  one  except  the  nomads  around  those  tents  off 
there.  The  guide-book  says  little  about  this  place,  except  that 
Bulla  Regia  existed  before  the  Roman  conquest,  and  was 
once  the  residence  of  Numidian  kings,  and  became  very  pros- 
perous under  the  Empire.  It  was  situated  on  the  Roman  road 
from  Carthage  to  Theveste  (Tebessa).  These  ruins  are 
spread  over  this  plain  dominated  by  that  stern  mountain 
which  is  called  Djebel  Rebia.  Those  immense  piles  of  ruins 
we  see  at  the  right  are  thought  to  be  baths ;  the  ruins  of  cis- 
terns the  natives  utilize  as  dwelling  houses.  There  are  some 
fine  Roman  houses  excavated,  also  a  temple  to  Apollo,  but 
mere  vestiges.  Many  statues  have  been  found  here,  and  are 
in  the  Alaoui  Museum  at  Tunis." 

**We  will  identify  what  we  can,"  said  the  Commander. 
*"'  This  Arab  is  able,  at  least,  to  show  us  the  Roman  houses." 

So  the  Two  followed  the  native,  who  seemed  anxious  to  have 
them  go  on.  It  was  a  strange  and  lonely  scene  under  the  gray 
sky ;  a  wide  barley  field  extended  to  the  east,  the  ruins  crop- 
ping up  from  it  and  from  other  small  fields,  through  which 
scarlet  poppies  tossed  on  their  slender  stems,  golden  mari- 
golds blazed  around  the  edges  of  the  piles  of  antique  masonry, 
and  the  stern  gray  and  black  mountain  at  the  west  guarded 
all.     The  breeze,  swaying  the  barley,  seemed  to  be  trying  to 

[312] 


TO  TUNIS 

whisper  the  story  of  this  ancient  ruined  city,  once  flourish- 
ing, now  mere  nameless  heaps  of  masonry.  A  rough  path  led 
through  the  fields,  over  which  the  Commander  and  the  Lady 
stumbled  after  the  native.  They  came  to  a  rude  fountain 
where  water  was  trickling  into  a  long  basin.  Here  they 
paused  to  see  a  Bedouin  woman  who  had  just  come  up  and 
was  standing  like  a  picture  against  the  fountain.  She  had 
dull  yellow  draperies,  caught  on  the  shoulder  with  great 
silver  pins,  and  a  scarlet  cloth  was  wound  around  her  head. 
She  carried  a  big  brown  jar,  of  graceful  shape,  slung  at  her 
back.  What  most  drew  the  Commander's  attention  was  the 
wonderful  and  unusual  earrings  she  wore,  silver  crescents 
with  several  long  chains  attached  to  them,  with  curious  en- 
graved ornaments  at  the  end  of  each  chain;  she  had  also  a 
wide  plaque  of  silver  hanging  from  silver  chains  around  her 
neck,  silver  bracelets  galore,  and  great  anklets.  He  gave  a 
gasp  and  stepped  forward  eagerly.  **  Ask  her  if  she  will  sell 
them!'* 

The  guide  was  made,  at  last,  to  comprehend  what  was  the 
Commander's  desire.  He  endeavored  to  make  the  fascinat- 
ing Bedouine  understand,  but  apparently  without  success. 
The  Commander  impatiently  stepped  forward  again,  drew 
three  five-franc  pieces  from  his  pocket  and  held  them  up. 
**  Gestures  and  money  are  sufficient;  she  understands  me/' 
he  said,  placing  the  money  in  her  hand  and  pointing  to  the 
earrings. 

The  woman  put  her  hand  up  as  if  to  pull  them  off,  but  it 
was  merely  to  arrange  them.  She  took  the  silver  and  drop- 
ping it  in  the  folds  of  her  drapery,  turned  placidly  to  fill  her 
jar  from  the  fountain.  The  Lady  laughed.  **  She  thinks  you 
have  made  her  a  present  to  her  charms.  She  is  not  going  to 
part  with  those  earrings,  and  here  is  the  usual  man  who  owns 
her." 

A  brown  Bedouin,  in  the  dirtiest  of  burnouses,  here  popped 
up  from  somewhere,  scowled  at  the  woman,  seized  her  rudely 
by  the  arm  nearly  overthrowing  the  jar,  and  was  about  to 
drag  her  off,  money  and  all,  when  the  guide  seemed  to  hlave  a 

[313] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

spasm  of  understanding.  He  rushed  to  rescue  the  money  for 
his  patrons.  The  result  was  that  the  disappointed  Comman- 
der regained  his  silver,  without  the  earrings,  and  the  Two 
struggled  on  after  the  now  impassive  Arab.  They  saw  some 
great  arches  on  a  mound  of  earth,  and  climbing  up,  looked 
down  from  what  seemed  to  be  the  upper  story  of  a  Roman 
house  into  an  atrium  surrounded  by  broken  columns  —  the 
mosaics  still  in  good  preservation  —  and  beyond,  some  small 
chambers  with  mosaics  intact.  It  must  have  been  a  very  fine 
house,  judging  by  the  dimensions  and  the  large  arches  above. 
Some  distance  beyond  this  were  the  few  ruins  of  the  temple 
of  Apollo,  as  marked  on  a  small  board  near,  and  mere  frag- 
ments they  were.  Two  more  Roman  houses  had  been  un- 
covered, and  excavations  were  actually  being  carried  on  at 
one  place,  where  an  Italian  foreman  was  directing  some  na- 
tives who  were  digging  and  carrying  out  baskets  of  earth. 
The  man  informed  the  inquirers  that  the  Tunisian  Society  of 
Archaeologists  was  engaged  in  the  excavations  of  Bulla 
Regia,  but  that  the  work  was  going  on  slowly.  The  Two  had 
stopped  to  look  at  a  mosaic  that  was  being  uncovered. 

*  *  I  should  think  so, ' '  said  the  Commander,  '  *  from  the  lit- 
tle we  see.  But  what  a  big  extent  the  ruins  spread  over !  It 
must  have  been  a  wealthy  city  judging  from  these  fine  re- 
mains of  houses,  with  their  mosaic  courts  and  columns,  pil- 
lars and  arches." 

''  What  can  make  a  city  come  to  utter  destruction  like 
this !  '  *  exclaimed  the  Other-one. 

''  Generally,  here  in  North  Africa,  the  Vandals,  the  earth- 
quakes, and  being  used  finally  by  the  Arabs  as  quarries  are 
the  causes  of  the  destruction  of  Roman  towns,"  answered  the 
Commander.  **  These  ruins  are  so  buried  under  the  soil 
that  the  city  must  certainly  have  been  destroyed  by  an 
earthquake. '  * 

The  Arab  now  was  restive ;  he  held  in  store  his  climax.  He 
led  them  down  a  long  path  at  some  distance  from  the  tem- 
ple. They  went  first  to  what  appeared  to  have  been  the  up- 
per story  of  another  Roman  house  having  an  atrium,  with 

[314] 


TO   TUNIS 

some  columns  standing,  a  triclinium  or  dining-room,  and  sev- 
eral sleeping-rooms  around  the  peristyle,  all  with  mosaic 
floors  in  geometrical  designs,  but  rather  coarse  in  workman- 
ship. From  here  the  outlook  was  glorious  over  the  wide 
plain.  The  guide  led  them  down  a  staircase,  very  well  pre- 
served; opened  a  wooden  door  with  a  key  he  carried,  and 
ushered  them  into  a  fine  atrium  with  pillars  and  columns, 
with  the  impluvium  in  the  centre  and  really  beautiful  mosaics 
under  the  corridors  around,  in  the  dining-room,  and  in  the 
small  chambers.  The  only  light,  however,  came  from  the 
open  court,  but  the  whole  appearance  indicated  that  it  must 
have  been  once,  in  that  far-away  time,  a  home  of  elegance 
and  luxury.  The  Arab  now  became  animated,  seeing  the  evi- 
dent pleasure  and  interest  of  his  patrons.  Pointing  above, 
he  repeated  the  words  **  There,  winter,'*  several  times;  then 
embracing  the  rooms  around  them  with  a  gesture,  he  said, 
**  Here,  summer.'* 

**  Oh,  I  know  what  he  means!  *'  exclaimed  the  Other-one. 
**  The  rich  Roman  who  owned  this  mansion  lived  above  in  the 
sunshine  in  winter,  and  when  the  summer  heat  came,  moved 
below  into  this  cool,  dark,  subterranean  palace.  This  sum- 
mer place  seems  much  more  elegant,  and  the  mosaics  are 
much  finer,  than  in  the  winter  one,  unlike  ours ;  but  the  sum- 
mer was  much  longer  than  winter,  which  accounts  for  it. 
How  I  wish  we  could  call  back,  for  just  one  hour,  by  the 
aid  of  a  magician  like  those  in  the  children's  story-books, 
this  Roman  family  to  see  what  the  members  were  like,  how 
they  lived,  arid  what  they  thought.  They  must  have  been  re- 
fined and  cultured,  from  the  elegance  of  all  here.  I  fancy  I 
can  detect  it,  too,  by  a  certain  subtle  odor,  like  that  which 
comes  from  a  rose  long  ago  withered,  when  one  opens  the 
drawer  where  it  has  lain." 

*'  How  could  they  have  been  a  happy  family?  "  said  the 
Commander.  **  Think,  with  no  automobiles,  and  obliged  to 
take  days  to  go  to  Tebessa  or  Carthage  in  a  springless  chariot 
drawn  probably  by  oxen !  But  come,  it  is  growing  late.  We 
have  yet  fifty-two  kilometres  to  make  for  our  night  camp." 

[  315  ]  ' 


A   MOTOR   FLIGHT 

So  they  went  thoughtfully  out  from  the  dead  city.  Passing 
near  some  Bedouin  tents  on  a  slope  they  saw  columns  of  thin 
smoke  rising  from  them.  Evidently  the  cous-cous  was  being 
prepared  for  the  evening  meal.  Some  children  clad  in  vivid 
yellow  ran  down  the  slope,  and  three  or  four  really  pretty 
women  stood  near  the  tents,  regarding  the  travellers  curiously, 
while  two  or  three  gaunt  dogs  barked  furiously,  tugging  at 
their  ropes  in  a  vain  endeavor  to  get  at  the  travellers. 

The  Motorists  were  soon  speeding  over  the  luxuriant  green 
plain.  They  crossed  the  Medjerda,  here  a  muddy,  slow- 
rolling  stream.  It  is  the  Bagrada  of  the  ancients,  and  is  the 
most  important  river  in  Tunisia. 

It  was  at  Medijez-el-Bab,  some  kilometres  farther  on,  that 
the  road  crossed  the  river  again,  by  an  old  Roman  bridge  of 
many  arches,  reconstructed,  however,  in  the  eighteenth  cen- 
tury with  the  ancient  materials. 

*'  "We  shall  turn  south  here  to-morrow  to  go  to  Dougga; 
but  there  is  no  place  to  stop,  so  we  run  up  to  Beja  to-night, 
where  there  is  a  hotel,  said  to  be  at  least  decent, '*  said  the 
Commander. 

It  was  dark  before  they  saw  Beja  from  afar,  a  mass  of 
white  houses  rising  up  to  a  gray  old  kasba,  and  shut  in  by  its 
old,  ruined,  Byzantine  walls,  on  a  green  slope  above  the  tree- 
less plains.  * '  It  looks  interesting  and  picturesque, ' '  said  the 
Other-one,  opening  her  book.  ' '  It  seems  it  was  an  important 
town  before  the  Eoman  conquest;  was  anciently  called  Vaga 
and  had  then  an  important  market.  The  Byzantine  walls 
have  been  much  rebuilt.  It  belongs  to  an  important  agricul- 
tural region  which  is  the  most  favored  in  Tunisia.  There  is  a 
calcareous  earth  in  the  country  about,  and  an  abundance  of 
water;  in  consequence,  European  colonization  here  has  rap- 
idly increased.'' 

The  car  entered  the  gate  and  rolled  up  the  street  of  the 
whole  town,  followed  by  a  crowd  of  ragged  Arab  boys  shout- 
ing and  making  springs  at  the  back  of  the  car,  only  to  be 
driven  back,  howling,  by  the  Commander's  whip.     As  the 

[316] 


TO  TUNIS 

party  descended  at  the  very  simple  hotel,  each  boy  sprang 
forward,  and  those  who  carried  blacking-boxes,  made  a  wild 
rush  to  black  the  shoes  of  the  travellers.  Entering  the  court- 
yard, the  first  glance  at  the  untidy  surroundings  and  at  the 
fat  landlady  who  came  forward,  was  not  reassuring;  she  had 
a  figure  like  a  bolster,  and  was  clad  in  ancient,  rusty  black; 
her  head  was  tied  up  in  an  old  woollen  shawl,  which  must 
have  once  belonged  to  an  early  inhabitant  of  Beja.  The 
hungry  and  weary  motorists  were  agreeably  surprised,  how- 
ever, to  be  ushered  into  clean  bedrooms  with  tiled  floors,  and 
they  found  the  dinner  served  them  in  the  little  dining-room 
by  an  exceedingly  depressed  waiter  in  a  dress-suit  as  rusty 
as  the  landlady's  gown,  most  succulent  and  savory. 

When  the  Commander  looked  out  in  the  morning,  he  saw 
the  streets  were  wet  with  the  rain  which  had  fallen  in  the 
night,  and  that  the  clouds  were  threatening  to  dissolve  again. 

**  I  am  afraid  this  rain  is  going  to  prevent  our  trip  to 
Dougga.  There  are  only  paths,  I  believe,  around  the  ruins, 
and  they  will  be  very  muddy  and  slippery.** 

When  they  left  Beja  a  fine  rain  was  falling ;  but  by  the  time 
they  came  in  sight  of  the  Roman  bridge  at  Medijez-el-Bab  the 
rain  had  ceased  and  the  clouds  were  opening  to  let  a  little 
sunlight  through ;  so  the  Commander  gave  the  order  to  turn 
south  for  Dougga.  The  road  ran  at  finst  along  the  left  bank 
of  the  Medjerda,  then  crossed  it  and  went  through  a  country 
barren  or  covered  with  bushes.  The  tops  of  mountains  pierced 
through  the  clouds  at  the  northwest.  At  seventy  kilometres 
it  traversed  a  grove  of  olive-trees  to  pass  through  the  little 
village  of  Testour,  whose  inhabitants  are  descendants  of  the 
Moors  who  emigrated  from  Spain.  It  is  a  village  of  low, 
whitewashed  houses,  outside  of  which  lounged  many  of  the 
**  descendants,**  apparently  taking  life  easy.  Farther  on, 
the  route  lay  by  great  heaps  of  ruins  which  showed  a  once 
flourishing  Roman  town.  **  It  is  Ain  Tounga,'*  read  the 
Other-one,  "once  Thignica,  an  important  city  in  ancient 
times.  When  constructing  this  road,  they  found  five  hun- 
dred votive  stiles  from  a  sanctuary  of  Saturn,  and  adorned 

[317] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

with  curious  bas-reliefs,  now  in  the  museum  at  Tunis.  They 
are  probably  like  those  we  saw  in  the  museum  at  Timgad. 
That  curious  construction  with  the  square  towers  was  most 
likely  the  Byzantine  fortress  spoken  about  in  the  book. '  * 

There  was  no  time  to  descend  and  wander  over  the  ruins, 
interesting  as  they  appeared.  When  the  guide-post  for  Kef 
came  in  sight,  where  the  road  forked,  the  Commander  ordered 
the  chauffeur  to  turn  to  the  right,  and  soon  they  were 
going  through  magnificent  groves  of  olive-trees.  The  road 
ran  by  long  curves  up  the  hill  upon  which  was  Teboursouk 
with  its  white  houses  and  curious  citadel  or  kasba  at  the  end 
of  the  village  with  its  picturesque  minarets.  Here  the  travel- 
lers took  luncheon  at  a  simple  but  clean  inn ;  and  while  they 
were  waiting  for  the  slow  waiter,  the  Other-one  read  from 
her  guide-book  (Guide  Joanne)  about  Dougga. 

**  It  was  a  Roman  town,  of  which  the  name  is  preserved  almost  in- 
tact —  Thugga.  ...  It  seems  in  the  first  half  of  the  second  century 
B.  C,  the  king,  Massenissa,  carried  off  to  Carthage  a  bilingual  Punic  and 
Libyan  inscription  (found  in  1904  at  Dougga  and  to-day  in  the  museum 
at  Tunis).  .  .  .  Most  of  the  Eoman  monuments  of  Dougga  were 
built  at  the  end  of  the  second  century  A.  D.,  or  the  beginning  of  the 
third,  when,  without  doubt  the  city  began  to  develop  rapidly.  Its  ruins, 
which  count  among  the  most  important  in  Eoman  Africa,  occupy  a  hill 
of  which  the  flanks  at  the  north  are  perpendicular,  and  lower  on  the 
southern  side.  Very  profitable  excavations  have  been  made  these  last 
few  years.  The  ruins  most  important  to  see  are  those  of  the  Theatre, 
the  Temple  of  the  Capitol  and  the  Punic-Lybic  Mausoleum." 

When  the  travellers  went  out,  it  looked  as  if  the  rain  were 
not  far  off,  and  the  Commander  shook  his  head  doubtfully. 
* '  However,  here  we  are  and  we  must  go  on,  rain  or  not.  It  is 
but  six  kilometres  from  here." 

The  road  proved  to  be  an  excellent  macadam  and  wound 
along  the  flanks  of  a  mountain.  The  valley  of  the  River 
Khalled  stretched  to  the  mountains  beyond,  a  soft  dull  green, 
flecked  with  light  and  shade ;  the  mountains  a  deep  blue-gray 
but  misty.  The  mountain  they  were  rounding  rose  in  jagged 
and  notched  gray  rock ;  before  them  lay  more  serrated  heights. 
The  way  was  lonely.  There  was  little  if  any  life;  the  usual 
swarms  of  natives  with  their  gay  coloring  and  their  flocks 

[318] 


-  o 


TO   TUNIS 

and  herds,  and  the  swaying  camels  —  all  were  absent;  only 
now  and  then  on  a  point  of  rock  a  little  shepherd,  his  dis- 
colored rags  fluttering  around  him,  tending  a  few  meagre 
goats,  stared  down  at  the  car  and  only  served  to  accentuate 
the  loneliness.  The  car  was  approaching  the  ancient  city, 
and  on  a  high  plateau  they  saw  some  columns,  gray  against 
the  darkened  sky. 

*  *  It  is  the  Temple  of  Saturn,  the  first  ruins  we  see,  but  we 
have  time  to  go  to  only  the  most  important  ones." 

The  road  ended  on  a  terrace  which  fell  away  steeply. 
Running  above  the  hill  there  were  ranks  of  stone  seats  and 
steps,  and  a  row  of  great  columns  below,  and  heaps  of  stones, 
capitals,  fragments  of  cornices,  and  broken  columns  lying  all 
around. 

**  It  is  the  theatre,**  said  the  Other-one,  **  and  how  grand 
in  spite  of  its  ruin,  and  what  a  glorious  site !  Oh,  if  we  only 
had  an  intelligent  guide  to  show  us  about!  ** 

A  few  natives  were  lounging  about  the  ruins,  and  two  or 
three  unkempt  boys  came  toward  the  car,  eyeing  all  dully,  but 
showing  no  inclination  to  offer  their  services  as  guides.  The 
sky  was  now  growing  blacker,  and  some  drops  of  rain  spat- 
tered the  stones  around. 

The  rain  held  off  a  while,  and  the  Two  climbed  the  stone 
steps  to  the  top  and  sat  down  to  look  off  on  the  wonderful 
view  far  below, —  in  sombre  colors,  grays,  purples,  and  dark 
greens, —  and  the  wonderful  ruins  before  them.  **  Like  that 
at  Timgad,  this  gives  one  an  idea  how  these  ancient  theatres 
were  constructed,**  said  the  Commander.  *'  See,  there  are 
twenty-five  rows  of  seats  rising  up  with  the  stone  steps  at  in- 
tervals. There  is  not  a  stone  missing.  Round  this  upper 
part  it  shows  there  was  a  portico,  and  here,  of  course,  the 
common  people  crowded.  The  first  seats  and  the  best,  of 
course,  were  reserved  for  the  important  people  and  graded 
according  to  rank.  The  orchestra  seems  to  have  been  paved 
with  slabs  of  marble,  and  there  must  have  been  statues  all 
around.*' 

*'  The  common  people,'*  said  the  Other-one,  getting  up  to 

[319] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

look  over  from  the  upper  part,  ^'  certainly  had  the  best  view 
of  the  country  around,  if  they  could  not  see  or  hear  ail  go- 
ing on  upon  the  stage.  But  I  wish  we  could  call  back  for  an 
hour  one  of  their  representations:  The  actors  in  their  robes 
and  masks,  the  chorus,  the  seats  all  crowded,  animation  and 
noise  everywhere!  It  seems  from  my  book  there  were  statues 
of  emperors  and  benefactors  of  the  city  here,  and  the 
pedestals  are  still  to  be  seen.  The  front  wall  of  the  stage 
is  still  well  preserved ;  it  has  all  its  elegant  ornamentation  — 
its  plinth  or  projecting  band  at  the  bottom,  the  mouldings 
of  the  cornice,  the  rectangular  and  alternate  round  niches. 
It  only  lacks  the  altar  which  must  have  been  once  in  the 
centre.  The  floor  of  the  stage  was  of  mosaic.  There  are  no 
grooves  or  holes  for  the  play  of  the  curtain.  Probably  they 
used  screens  (siparia),  which  were  folded  back  at  the  end 
of  each  act.  The  openings  of  the  traps  where  appeared 
the  shadows  and  the  phantoms  are  perfectly  visible.  The 
guide-book  also  tells  us  that  *  before  the  theatre  was  a  colon- 
nade where  the  spectators  were  wont  to  promenade  between 
the  acts.  Now  one  looks  down  upon  the  plain  of  Oued  Khalled, 
the  forests  of  olives,  the  fields  of  wheat  and  barley,  and  plains 
for  pasturage;  then  it  was  covered  with  villas,  farms,  and 
small  boroughs.  There  is  an  inscription  on  the  cornice  to  the 
effect  that  one  Publius  Marcius  Quadratus  ' '  had  the  honor  to 
construct  for  his  country  a  theatre,  with  a  basilica,  prome- 
nades, a  portico,  stage,  curtain,  and  ornaments  of  all  kinds. 
On  the  day  of  his  inauguration,  he  gave  a  representation  of 
gymnastic  plays,  made  a  distribution,  and  offered  a  repast  to 
all  the  people;  and  there  was  place  for  three  thousand  to 
three  thousand  five  hundred  people. ' '  '  How  real  it  makes  all 
seem  here,  to  read  about  this!  It  clothes  these  skeletons  of 
columns,  seats,  porticos,  and  stage  with  flesh  and  blood.*' 

**  Publius  must  have  been  an  astute  politician,''  said  the 
Commander,  rising  from  his  hard  seat .  *  *  Let  us  now  go  to 
see  the  temples." 

They  left  the  theatre  of  Publius  and,  under  the  guidance 
of  a  small  native  who  was  made  to  understand  their  wishes, 

[320] 


TO  TUNIS 

they  set  out  down  the  muddy,  sticky  road  where  in  some 
places,  the  ancient  pavement  protruded  through  the  pools. 
They  struggled  in  the  rain  down  by  the  wretched  houses, 
windowless  and  rude.  Rounding  a  corner,  the  Two  saw  a 
beautiful  ruined  temple,  with  seven  fine  Corinthian  columns, 
four  supporting  the  pediment ;  a  grand  and  most  impressive 
temple  even  in  its  ruined  condition.  It  was  the  capitol, 
dedicated  to  Jupiter,  Juno,  and  Minerva.  The  Two  went  up 
the  long  flight  of  steps  and  under  the  columns,  hoping  to  find 
some  part  of  the  roof  preserved  under  which  they  might  take 
shelter  from  the  rain.  There  was  no  roof  left,  however.  At 
the  back  are  three  niches  which  must  have  held  statues  to  the 
deities. 

'  *  Do  you  see  those  side  walls,  how  curiously  they  are 
built  f  *'  asked  the  Commander,  as  they  sat  down  under  the 
centre  arch,  where  had  been,  without  doubt,  a  statue  of  Jupi- 
ter. **  There  are  uprights  of  stone  at  intervals  of  about  four 
feet,  filled  in  between  with  a  mass  of  broken  stone.  I  do  not 
remember  to  have  seen  in  any  ruin  work  like  this.  The  res- 
torations probably  resemble  the  ancient  work.  There  are 
ruins  upon  ruins  all  around,  showing  up  here  and  there 
through  this  wretched  Arab  town.  What  more  are  we  to 
seer' 

**  There  is  the  remarkable  Punic-Lybic  Monument,'*  said 
the  Lady,  **  but  it  must  be  some  distance  from  here,  down  in 
that  olive-grove  far  below ;  I  doubt  if  we  can  go  down  there 
to-day.  Then  there  is  the  Temple  of  Celestis  (Juno  of  the 
Romans,  and  Tamit  of  the  Carthaginians),  the  ruins  of  which 
are  fine,  we  must  see  that.  Also  there  are  big  cisterns,  arches, 
and  many  fragments  scattered  in  the  field."  The  small 
Arab  seemed  to  understand  the  words  **  Temple  of  Celestis  ** 
and  started  off  rapidly.  Following,  the  travellers  came  into 
a  grove  of  great  olive-trees,  hoary  with  age  and  dripping 
with  rain.  The  path  through  them  was  slippery  with  mud 
and  water.  They  stumbled  along  it  and  came  to  an  open 
space  and  saw  the  columns  and  steps  of  the  once  beautiful 
temple,  with  the  half -circle  of  walls  on  three  sides  of  it  and  a 

[321] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

paved  court  extending  in  front.  ''  The  portico  with  Cor- 
inthian columns  must  have  been  a  reminder  of  the  crescent 
moon,  the  symbol  of  the  goddess.  The  cella  which  was  built 
in  the  Greek-Eoman  style,  occupied  the  centre,  surrounded 
by  fine  columns.  In  all  the  niches  around  must  have  been 
statues."  So  much  the  Other-one  learned  from  a  glance  at 
her  book. 

This  ruined  temple  impressed  the  travellers  as  much  as 
any  they  had  yet  seen ;  not  so  much  for  what  it  showed  now 
as  for  what  it  must  have  been  once,  with  its  stile,  the  great 
paved  space  before  it,  or  the  court,  and  the  hemicycle  extend- 
ing around,  with  the  niches  for  statues.  There  is  an  air  of 
elegance  even  now  in  all  its  ruin.  The  old  trees,  not  far  from 
the  temple,  gave  all  a  most  picturesque  look.  Even  now,  in 
the  falling  rain,  the  Two  were  loth  to  leave.  There  was  a 
melancholy  pleasure  in  trying  to  restore,  in  imagination,  the 
temple  —  beautiful  even  now  in  its  ruined  state  —  to  its  pris- 
tine glory. 

But  the  Two  went  away  in  the  falling  rain  to  where  they 
had  left  the  car.  They  arrived,  a  sorry  spectacle  to  the  eyes 
of  the  faithful  chauffeur  who  could  not  understand  '*  such 
foolishness. ' ' 

**  I  cannot  endure  to  go  away  and  leave  that  Punic  Monu- 
ment unseen,"  said  the  Lady.  *'  Let  us  go  down  to  it.  I 
know  it  is  not  far  from  here." 

The  Two  could  see  down  the  muddy  lane  that  led,  at  the 
left  of  the  theatre,  to  the  top  of  what  appeared  to  be  a  mina- 
ret showing  above  the  olive-trees.  When  the  Other-one  uttered 
the  words  *'  Libyan-Punic,"  the  boy  pointed  to  this  and 
started  down  the  road,  looking  back  for  them  to  follow.  They 
walked  down  the  narrow,  sloppy  street,  passing  a  heap  of 
ruins  which  were  being  unearthed,  some  men  being  at  work 
even  now  in  the  mud. 

The  lane  ended  at  a  grove  of  olive-trees  on  a  slope  down 
which  a  narrow  path  led  to  the  monument,  through  the  wet 
dank  grass  amid  which  many  fragments  of  ruins  protruded. 
The  mausoleum  was  certainly  a  surprise  to  the  travellers, 

[  322  ] 


TO   TUNIS 

rising  above  the  olive-trees  about  fifty-eight  feet  in  height,  a 
square  base  surmounted  by  a  pyramid,  all  constructed  of 
blocks  of  light-colored  limestone. 

**  It  is  certainly  very  impressive  in  its  strength  and  sim- 
plicity, as  well  as  very  picturesque.  It  is  not,  however,  as 
imposing  as  the  Tomb  of  the  Christian  we  saw  near  Cherchel. 
It  has  been  reconstructed,  and  must  be  nearly  what  it  was 
when  first  built,  except  that  some  of  the  figures  are  mutilated 
and  parts  gone,**  said  the  Commander. 

The  guide-book  says:  **  This  Libyan-Punic  Mausoleum,  which  appears 
to  date  from  the  second  century  B.  C,  had  on  its  eastern  side,  an  in- 
scription in  the  Punic  language,  as  also  in  the  Libyan.  In  1842  an  Eng- 
lish Consul  at  Tunis  wished  to  carry  off  the  stone  with  this  inscription 
for  the  British  Museum,  where  it  now  is.  He  left  the  work  to  ignorant 
Arabs,  who  demolished,  in  part,  the  monument  to  obtain  the  stone.  The 
Service  dee  Antiquitis  worked  to  restore  this  mausoleum,  of  which  the 
absent  parts  had  rolled  down  to  the  foot  of  those  left  standing.  The 
monument  is  now  exactly  as  it  was  —  except  the  bilingual  stone  —  before 
the  mutilation  of  1842.'' 

This  is  the  description  of  the  monument: 

'*  On  a  sub-base  composed  of  several  tiers  of  stone  there  is  a  square 
base  ornamented  with  Ionic  pilasters  at  the  corners  and  with  false  win- 
dows; on  the  west  side,  the  window  formed  an  opening  through  which 
one  could  penetrate  into  the  interior  of  the  mausoleum.  The  second 
stage  is  the  same  as  the  first;  it  rests  on  other  tiers  and  is  a  square 
mass  decorated  on  the  sides  with  eight  fluted,  engaged  Ionic  columns; 
at  the  angles  are  free  columns.  Above  the  entablature,  in  Phoenician 
style,  which  surmounts  these  columns,  is  another  sub-base  of  three  tiers, 
cut  out  at  the  corners  and  having  horsemen  in  each.  This  supports  a 
third  stage,  ornamented  with  quadrigas  in  baa-relief,  much  -mutilated 
now.  This  is  capped  by  a  pyramid,  ornamented  at  the  angles  by  winged 
Victories  and  surmounted  by  a  lion.  .  .  .  This  royal  tomb  is  inter- 
esting in  its  details  of  construction  and  by  the  attempts  at  ornamenta- 
tion by  the  builder,  inspired  by  Greek  art.  .  .  .  Monsieur  Saladin, 
who  made  a  thorough  study  of  this  tomb,  remarks  that  there  are  found 
here  Greek  and  Egyptian  elements,  and  what  seems  moreover  to  have 
been  the  real  Carthaginian  art.  From  the  Egyptians  they  borrowed  the 
form  of  the  cornice  and  the  capital  as  well  as  the  pyramidal  form; 
from  the  Greeks  they  took  the  details  of  their  highest  order  and  the 
figures  and  the  reliefs  which  decorate  it.*' 

Leaving  the  impressive  monument  the  Two  toiled  up  the 
muddy  lane  and  arrived  again  on  the  terrace  where  the  car 
waited;  were  wrung  out  and  brushed  anew  by  the  patient 

[323] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

Adrian  and  the  pretty  Marguerite,  who  could  not  conceal  their 
astonishment  at  this  new  evidence  of  the  folly  of  their  employ- 
ers in  trudging  through  mud  and  rain  and  a  filthy  village  to 
view  some  scattered  stones  and  broken  columns,  when  at  Tunis 
they  could  see,  undoubtedly,  fine  big  hotels  and  great  deco- 
rated bank-buildings,  all  new  and  shining.  The  car  rolled 
down  the  loops  of  the  road,  leaving  the  little  drenched  and 
muddy  native  irradiated  with  joy  over  the  handful  of  sous 
the  good-hearted  Commander  had  dropped  in  his  grimy  little 
paw. 

It  was  after  dark  that  evening  when  they  saw  the  lights  of 
Tunis  through  the  mist  of  rain,  and  came  near  to  the  jing- 
ling tram-cars  outside  of  the  great  walls.  A  white  gate  with 
three  portals  loomed  up.  **  We  cannot  enter  the  gates,  but 
must  pass  around  the  walls  to  the  European  quarter  in  which 
is  our  hotel,"  said  the  Commander. 

They  went  on  by  the  high  walls  until  there  was  a  blaze 
of  light  ahead,  and  the  walls  disappeared  as  if  by  magic. 
The  motor  soon  stopped  in  front  of  a  big,  gaudy  hotel,  and 
porters  in  livery  ran  out  to  take  in  the  baggage.  The  Lady 
felt  a  shock  of  surprise  and  disappointment  —  was  this 
Oriental  Tunis?  In  her  muddy  garments  and  drenched  hat 
and  veil  she  entered  the  brilliantly  lighted  hall,  where  ladies 
in  gay  evening  toilettes  and  their  cavaliers  —  arrayed  also  in 
evening  dress  —  were  going  into  the  dining-room. 


[324] 


CHAPTER  XXI 

THE    **  WHITE    city'*  —  THE    SOUKS    AND    MOSQUES;    WITH    A 
VISIT  TO  THE  BARDO  AND  THE  BELVEDERE 

EVEN  automobilists  must  stop  sometimes  in  their  headlong 
career  and  gather  up  the  odds  and  ends  that  have  be- 
come loosened  in  a  flight  over  hills  and  plains ;  so  our  Motor- 
ists were  obliged  to  take  a  day  for  these  with  some  resting, 
so  as  to  be  able  the  next  day  to  enter  into  the  fascinations  of 
this  famed  Oriental  City  of  Tunis.  These,  they  knew,  must 
lie  not  far  off,  behind  those  walls  they  had  passed  the  night 
before ;  though,  from  the  outlook  from  the  front  of  the  great 
garish  hotel  where  they  lodged  —  on  a  street  of  real  French 
shops  —  there  was  no  evidence  that  they  were  in  an  Oriental 
city.  Even  the  garden  under  their  windows,  with  its  one 
palm  and  gay,  flowering  bushes,  could  have  been  seen  any- 
where on  the  Riviera.  To  be  sure  there  was  an  Oriental  sort 
of  building  across  the  street,  with  very  much  exaggerated 
Moorish  arches,  and  glistening  white  with  much  cheap  and 
gaudy  decoration  in  color,  the  portico  hung  with  rugs  and 
littered  with  cheap,  inlaid  furniture.  It  looked  like  a  spider's 
web  with  the  head  spider,  in  a  red  fez  but  European  clothes, 
out  in  front  looking  for  unwary  tourist  flies.  This  gave  the 
effect  of  a  theatrical  scene  badly  painted  and  poorly  set. 

Late  in  the  afternoon  the  Two  sallied  forth  to  have  a  pre- 
liminary glimpse  of  the  French  town  before  they  should  be- 
gin their  real  sight-seeing  in  the  Oriental  part  of  the  city. 

**  I  suppose,'*  said  the  Other-one,  **  we  must  have  a  guide 
to-morrow  to  show  us  through  the  maze  of  streets  of  the 
native  quarters.  How  I  wish  we  could  have  Bashir,  who, 
from  all  accounts,  is  the  ideal  guide.  But  of  course  he  is  off 
with  some  *  so  rich  American  or  English  family.'  " 

They  strolled  on  out  to  the  Avenue  Jules  Ferry,  passing 

r3251 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

on  their  way  a  very  flamboyant  casino.  This  avenue  is  a  wide 
and  splendid  one,  bordered  with  a  double  row  of  the  ever- 
green ficus  trees,  an  avenue  of  which  even  Paris  might  be 
proud.  It  opens  into  the  Place  de  la  Residence,  where  are 
flourishing  palm-trees,  before  it  becomes  the  Avenue  de 
France.  On  the  south  side  is  the  plain  mansion  of  the  French 
Resident  General,  and  opposite  the  rather  ugly  Cathedral 
with  no  especial  style  of  architecture.  Fine  shops  and  cafes 
line  both  sides  of  the  avenues,  the  latter  predominating.  It 
was  a  gay  and  animated  scene  that  the  Two  came  into,  being 
the  hour  when  the  French  population  turns  out  in  full  force. 
Moreover,  it  was  Thursday  afternoon,  when  the  band  plays 
there,  so  the  avenues  were  thronged  with  pedestrians  and  the 
cafes  were  doing  a  rushing  business. 

The  rich,  warm  sun  flickered  through  the  foliage  of  the 
trees  and  made  spots  of  light  on  the  sidewalks  where  walked 
beautifully  dressed  women  and  men  in  correct  summer  cos- 
tume and  fierce  mustaches.  The  Eastern  element,  winding  in 
and  out,  set  off  the  gayer  colors  with  white  ha'iks,  cream,  or 
gray,  and  the  pale  tones  of  burnouses,  while  the  French  offi- 
cers were  resplendent  in  their  scarlets  and  blues  and  gold 
braid.  Everybody  was  talking,  everybody  was  laughing,  it 
seemed,  and  everybody  else  drinking  coffee,  beer,  or  absinth 
at  the  cafes,  whose  little  tables  overflowed  out  into  the  street. 
Seated  at  a  few  of  them  were  Spahis  in  their  red  boleros  with 
black  embroidery  and  blue  pantaloons,  with  their  white  Jmiks 
bound  with  the  camel 's  hair  rope ;  Tirailleurs  in  pale  blue  with 
yellow  embroidery  and  white  spats ;  Chasseurs  d^Afrique  in 
blue  jackets,  tight  red  pants,  and  high  boots.  Arab  dandies 
in  pale  delicate  greens,  mauves,  and  grays,  a  carnation  or  a 
rosebud  stuck  behind  the  ear,  lolled  indolently  at  other  tables. 
Grave  and  Biblical-looking  patriarchs  in  voluminous  bur- 
nouses and  Jidiks,  hobnobbed  over  tiny  cups  of  coffee,  but  the 
black  coats  and  light  trousers  of  the  Europeans  predominated. 
In  the  streets  there  were  the  coarser  threads  of  the  ragged 
beggars  and  the  Berber  porters  in  rough  brown  sacks. 

Our  Two  wandered  on  up  the  avenue  with  a  feeling  of 

[  326  ] 


THE   "WHITE   CITY" 

leisurely  enjoyment,  though  it  was  not  what  they  had  come 
to  see  in  Tunis;  but  at  the  end  where  the  street-cars  jangle 
in  a  bunch  together,  starting  here  to  circulate  the  Old  Town 
and  return,  they  saw  an  ancient  gate  before  them — the  Porte 
de  France,  the  Old  Sea  Gate  of  the  Oriental  city,  which  the 
Tunisians  called  Bab-el-Bahar,  because  it  opened  on  to  the 
road  going  to  the  sea.  It  is,  in  form,  a  great  bay  with  a 
stilted  arch.  It  still  keeps  its  old  folding-doors,  though  these 
now  always  stand  open.  *  *  It  is  our  magic  gate !  '  *  exclaimed 
the  Other-one.  *  *  Let  us  step  within,  and  we  shall  be  in  the 
real,  old,  Oriental  city !  * ' 

They  pushed  through  the  crowd  of  Arabs,  Moors,  Berbers, 
and  Soudanese  porters,  Jews,  and  veiled  women,  going  in  or 
pouring  out  in  a  ceaseless  stream  under  the  great  gate  to 
foam  up  against  the  horse-cars;  this  being  the  only  avenue 
from  the  old  town  to  the  starting-place  of  the  trams.  Out  of 
the  open  space  beyond  —  and  also  filled  with  a  crowd,  with 
carts  and  donkeys  and  even  a  camel  or  two,  mixed  up  in  an 
apparently  inextricable  tangle  —  two  streets,  the  Rue  d^Eglise 
and  the  Rue  du  Kasba,  narrow  and  tortuous,  lead  up  to 
Orient  land.  It  had  come  to  the  point  now  when  the  Other- 
one  could  see  a  burnous  or  a  white  hdik  without  staring  at 
the  man  wearing  it  as  something  strange  or  unusual.  She 
had  even  become  used  to  the  sight  of  veiled  ladies  in  her  weeks 
of  motoring  through  Algeria,  but  veiled  women  like  those 
coming  down  the  narrow  streets  were  different  from  any  she 
had  yet  seen.  They  were  jet-black  negresses,  apparently,  but 
as  they  drew  near,  she  saw  that  they  were  white,  but  with  a 
black  veil  tied  tightly  over  their  faces,  only  leaving  a  slit 
where  the  eyes  came.  They  wore  the  usual  white  hdik  cover- 
ing the  head  and  draped  around  the  body.  They  shuffled 
hurriedly  along,  their  feet  thrust  half  into  heelless  slippers, 
and  seeming  anxious  to  avoid  any  notice.  Then  there  came 
in  sight  another  unusual  figure,  a  woman  who  appeared  even 
more  anxious  to  conceal  herself  than  the  others.  Her  hatk 
was  of  soft,  cream-white,  striped  silk,  and  fell  in  scanty  folds 
around  her.    She  had  fine  slippers  of  patent  leather,  but  the 

[327] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

most  peculiar  thing  about  her  was  the  wide,  long  scarf  she 
wore,  of  black  silk  but  with  a  rich  border,  and  ends  in  yellow 
designs.  This  scarf  was  passed  over  her  head  and  held  with 
both  hands  out  so  far  in  front  of  her  that  her  face  was  com- 
pletely concealed,  and  she  could  not  possibly  see  anything  be- 
yond the  ground  in  front  of  her.  The  Other-one  wondered 
who  or  what  she  might  be,  but  though  there  were  many  other 
veiled  women,  this  was  the  only  one  w^ho  appeared  in  the 
throng  with  this  curious  scarf -veil;  and  now  the  Other-one 
felt  she  had  really  entered  the  gate  of  the  Orient  and  she 
must  keep  her  eyes  open  for  curious  sights.  As  it  was  late, 
the  Two  soon  went  back  after  watching  for  a  time  the  strange 
and  fascinating  medley  of  humanity,  leaving  until  another 
day  the  penetrating  into  the  inner  mysteries  of  the  Medina, 
the  primitive  agglomeration  of  the  Oriental  city  to  which  the 
streets  from  the  Porte  de  France  lead. 

When  the  Commander  came  up  to  their  room  after  dinner 
that  evening,  he  found  the  Other-one  poring  over  guide- 
books. 

' '  I  have  some  good  news  for  you, ' '  he  said.  * '  You  will 
not  need  to  be  tied  to  your  '  Cook  '  and  'Joanne  '  during 
your  sight-seeing  to-morrow.  I  have  seen  the  ideal  guide, 
Bashir.  He  is  waiting  here  for  a  rich  American  family,  but 
as  they  may  not  arrive  for  three  or  four  days,  he  will  be  glad 
to  give  his  time  to  us  until  they  come.  He  looks  handsome 
enough  in  clothes  that  will  satisfy  even  your  aesthetic  taste, 
and  withal  he  seems  to  be  a  fine  fellow.  I  could  wish  he 
spoke  English  a  little  better,  but  with  my  excellent  English, 
and  your  poor  French,  I  have  no  doubt  we  shall  get  along.'' 

* '  Delightful !  ' '  exclaimed  the  Lady,  ignoring  the  last.  * '  I 
hope  '  the  rich  American  family  '  may  be  content  to  browse 
in  other  pastures  for  a  time.  But  even  if  we  are  to  have 
Bashir,  there  are  things  about  which  he  may  not  be  able  to 
tell  us,  so  I  am  going  to  ask  you  to  seat  yourself  in  that  com- 
fortable armchair  and  let  me  read  you  something  about  Tunis, 
for  I  know  you  have  been  gossiping  with  other  travellers 
instead  of  reading  up  this  city." 

[  328  ] 


A   WOMAN   UK  TIMS,   oK    TIIK 
LOWER  CLASS 


PORTE  DE  FRANCE, 
LOOKING  FROM  THE  OLD  TOWN,  TUNIS 


THE   MINARET   OF  THE  GREAT 
MOSQUE  AT  TUNIS 


mmBE 


IN  A  COURTYARD  OF  THE  PALACE  OF  DAI-EL-BEY,  TUNIS 


THE   "WHITE   CITY  " 

"  Tunis  was  founded  before  either  Utica  or  Carthage,  and 
still  keeps  its  ancient  name  Tounis  or  Thinis.  It  was  eclipsed 
by  its  neighbor,  Carthage,  but  when  Rome  was  overthrown  it 
became  the  capital  of  the  country.  Conquered  by  Khair-ed- 
Din  in  1533,  it  was  attacked  two  years  later  by  Charles  V, 
when  twenty  thousand  Christian  slaves  escaped  from  the  kasba 
and  opened  the  city  gates  to  him.  It  then  came  under  the 
Spanish  protectorate,  but  only  for  a  few  years,  for  the  Turks 
attacked  it  in  1574,  and  retained  possession  until  it  was  con- 
quered by  the  French  in  1881. 

*  *  Under  the  governing  beys  piracy  and  slavery  were  carried 
on  to  such  an  extent  that  France  and  other  countries  decided 
to  interfere,  and,  in  1855,  the  fleet  of  the  Bey  of  Tunis  was 
destroyed  by  Admiral  Blake.  Piracy  was  arrested,  and  pub- 
lic works  were  carried  out.  In  1881  it  was  decided  that 
France  should  enter  Tunis.  Troops  crossed  the  frontier;  a 
French  expedition  was  sent  to  the  Khroumirs,  said  to  be  an 
uncivilized,  troublesome,  and  independent  tribe.  It  was  a 
short  and  easy  task.  Tabarca,  Bizerte,  and  other  towns  were 
occupied,  and  the  French  general  advanced  on  Tunis.  The 
French  Government  was  obliged  to  send  a  large  army  to  sub- 
due the  various  tribes  and  to  occupy  the  various  cities  from 
one  end  of  the  Regency  to  the  other.  To-day  every  import- 
ant point  in  Tunisia  is  garrisoned  by  French  troops. 

**  The  French  Protectorate  in  Tunis  has  been  very  success- 
ful. The  bey  nominally  makes  all  the  laws ;  but  he  does  this 
on  the  advice  of  a  Resident  and  six  French  administrators. 
Even  if  the  bey  has  but  little  power  his  presence  on  the 
throne  is  a  guarantee  to  the  Mussulman  population  that 
their  prejudices  are  being  respected. 

**  Tunis  was  formerly  surrounded  by  a  wall  and  ramparts; 
some  of  these  have  been  destroyed  to  make  room  for  fine 
streets  and  boulevards.  It  is  divided  into  two  quarters,  the 
old  and  the  new,  the  French  having  decided  wisely  to  keep 
the  native  quarter  intact  instead  of  destroying  it  to  make 
new  boulevards,  while  the  French  quarter,  its  boulevards, 
theatres,  banks,  shops,  and  hotels,  grew  up  outside  the  walls. 

[329] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

The  native  quarter,  however,  has  been  lighted,  the  streets 
named,  and  sanitary  conditions  introduced,  so  the  old  town  is 
extremely  clean  for  an  Oriental  city.  It  lies  in  the  older  and 
higher  part  of  the  city,  in  which,  below  the  kasba  and  the 
Dar-el-Bey  (Bey's  Palace),  are  situated  the  labyrinths  of 
souks  or  bazaars,  each  street  tenanted  by  persons  of  the  same 
occupation,  such  as  jewellers,  perfumers,  saddlers,  woollen 
dealers,  silk  merchants,  shoemakers,  embroiderers,  etc.  Here 
are  a  motley  crowd  of  nationalities  and  races, —  Tunisians, 
Algerians,  Moroccans,  negroes.  Bedouins,  Moors,  and  Jews. 
Even  before  the  Turkish  domination,  the  Mussulman  con- 
sidered Tunis  La  Blanche,  a  city  without  equal,  more  beauti- 
ful and  powerful  than  all  other  Eastern  cities. 

**  The  French  and  other  Europeans  inhabit  the  new  quar- 
ter. The  city  and  suburbs  form  four  districts  known  as 
Medina,  the  real,  native  part,  where  are  the  souks  and  the 
Palace  of  the  Bey ;  the  Faubourg  of  Bab-Souika  to  the  north ; 
the  Faubourg  of  Bab-el-D jazira  to  the  south ;  and  the  Marine 
or  European  quarter.  There  are  eight  gates  leading  into  the 
native  town.  The  tram-cars  go  from  the  Porte  de  France 
around  the  streets  which  separate  the  faubourgs,  but  do  not 
enter  Medina. 

*  *  The  city  of  Tunis  stands  on  an  isthmus  dividing  two  salt 
lakes;  that  to  the  northeast  communicates  with  the  sea  at 
Goletta  by  means  of  a  canal  that  was  constructed  in  ancient 
times.  This  lake  is  called  El  Bahira,  or  the  Little  Sea,  by  the 
natives.  The  other  lake  is  the  Sebka-es-Sedjoumi.  Goletta 
is  no  longer  the  seaport  of  Tunis,  which  now  connects  di- 
rectly with  the  sea  by  a  large  canal  cut  through  El  Bahira, 
by  which  large  ships  can  go  directly  to  the  city. '  * 

**  Well,''  said  the  Commander,  **  with  all  this  and  with 
Bashir  to  guide  us,  we  shall  be  able  to  go  everywhere  but  into 
the  mosque. 

*'  You  know  that  a  Christian  cannot  enter  a  mosque  in 
Tunisia,  except  in  Kairouan,  *  the  sacred  city, '  as  it  is  called ; 
for  the  French  commanded  that  all  mosques  in  Kairouan 
should  be  open  to  Christians." 

[  330  ] 


THE    "WHITE   CITY" 

When  the  Other-one  went  down  to  the  entrance-hall  the 
next  morning,  the  Commander  presented  Bashir  to  her.  She 
was  delighted  to  find  that  he  was  an  ideally  picturesque 
guide,  in  his  dark  red  jacket  heavily  embroidered  in  black, 
full  plaited  trousers  of  the  same  color,  a  beautiful  sash  of 
softest  dull  tints  of  blue  and  pink  girdled  around  his  waist, 
a  red  fez  with  a  great  tassel  set  far  back  on  his  head,  and  a 
burnous  of  the  tint  of  a  brown  autumn  leaf  thrown  grace- 
fully over  his  shoulders.  He  was  indeed  a  joy  to  the  Lady's 
eyes.  More  than  all  else  were  the  bright,  dark  eyes,  the  face 
of  a  pale  bronze  color  and  alive  with  intelligence,  his  bearing 
of  calm  certainty  that  he  could  please  his  patrons,  and  a 
certain  quick  sympathy  with,  and  an  understanding  of,  the 
different  natures  he  was  to  take  under  his  charge. 

*'  We  will  go  first  to  the  souks/'  he  said.  **  It  is  best  there 
in  the  morning,  and  all  the  foreigners  who  come  here  wish 
to  see  them  at  once. " 

They  took  one  of  the  open  victorias  standing  at  the  hotel 
entrance  and  rode  up  the  avenue,  alighting  at  the  Porte  de 
France.  They  went  in  under  the  old  gate,  through  the  pul- 
sating life  of  the  little  square  beyond,  and  turned  up  the 
narrow  Rue  de  TEglise,  pushing  their  way  along  by  little 
shops  of  glittering,  cheap  jewellery, —  poor  Sicilian  shops  of 
common  hats  and  coats,  with  a  more  attractive  shop  or  so  of 
copper  jars  and  pots  and  pans,  and  a  vegetable  shop  tucked 
in  between.  They  were  crushed  to  the  wall,  sometimes,  by 
an  old  Berber  or  Nubian  porter  in  a  coarse,  sack-like  garment, 
his  only  one,  with  a  burden  on  his  back  big  enough  for  three 
men  to  lift,  and  held  on  by  a  rope  passed  around  it  and  his 
forehead.  One  jet-black  Soudanese  had  a  pile  of  at  least  a 
dozen  chairs,  which  the  Lady  carefully  counted  as  she 
crushed  herself,  while  waiting,  into  one  of  the  cheap  jewellery 
shops  where  the  presiding  Jew  welcomed  her,  shouting  to  her 
to  come  and  buy  of  his  *  *  beautiful  rings,  watches,  and  brace- 
lets, so  sheep/' 

**  These  porters  carry  out  all  the  things  sold  in  the  souks/* 
said  Bashir,  **  and  are  very  strong.*' 

[331] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

'  *  And  there  is  a  woman  like  the  one  I  saw  yesterday,  with 
the  scarf -veil ;  what  is  she,  and  why  do  the  most  of  the  women 
wear  those  disfiguring  black  veils?  "  asked  the  Other-one. 

**  That  is  the  wife  of  a  rich  tradesman.  These  women  are 
rarely  seen  down  here.  You  notice  she  has  her  Soudanese 
servant  with  her.  The  others  with  the  black  veils  are  the 
poorer  Tunisians.'' 

They  now  passed  under  a  black,  ominous-looking  arch,  above 
which,  Bashir  told  them,  was  the  bey's  prison,  and  half  way 
up  they  saw  doors  opening  in  dark  holes.  Here  the  party 
came  out  to  the  rue  Zitouna,  and  Bashir  showed  them  the 
Grand  Mosque  of  Tunis, —  El  Zitouna,  or  Mosque  of  the 
Olive-tree,  founded  in  698.  A  fine  flight  of  steps  leads  up  to 
a  great  door  under  a  long  arcade  supported  by  columns.  It 
has  a  very  imposing  outside.  *'  In  it,"  Bashir  told  them, 
*'  are  seven  open  courts,  and  here  many  Tunisian  youths  are 
being  educated." 

They  went  directly  from  here  in  to  the  Souk-el- Attarin,  or 
the  bazaar  of  the  perfumers,  and  thus  began  to  thread  the 
tangle  of  these  famed  bazaars  and  wandered  through  them  in 
a  maze  of  color.  There  is  a  sort  of  twilight  over  all,  as  these 
sotiks  are  all  roofed  over,  some  with  wooden  roofs,  others 
with  stone  arches  and  roofs  of  cement.  In  these  are  openings 
through  which  the  light  sifts  down  on  the  fascinating  medley 
of  color  and  Oriental  shop-life.  The  light  also  comes  from 
where  the  different  souks  open  out  into  others,  and  there  are 
big  gates  to  close  between  each  at  night  or  in  case  of  fire.  The 
Souk-el- Attarin  is  the  aristocratic  quarter,  as  Bashir  told  them, 
and  most  of  the  perfume-sellers  here  are  very  rich  and  said 
to  be  descendants  of  Corsair  chiefs.  Certainly  they  seemed  to 
the  Lady  to  have  no  desire  to  sell,  for  they  lolled  indolently  in 
their  little  cupboards  (unlike  the  clamorous  Jew  merchants) 
with  the  little  shelves  behind  them  full  of  cut-glass  gilded 
bottles  and  those  fascinating  long  flacons  which  travelled 
friends  often  bring  to  the  stay-at-homes,  with  a  drop  of  the 
rose  left  from  the  evaporation,  giving  to  the  recipient  a  fasci- 
nating dream  of  far  Oriental  lands. 

[  332  ] 


THE   "WHITE   CITY" 

Above  the  heads  of  the  perfume-sellers,  hang  long,  slender 
or  wide-branched  candles  decorated  in  all  the  colors  of  the 
rainbow,  looking  like  strange  fruits,  which  are  taken,  as 
Bashir  said,  to  the  tombs  of  the  marabouts,  or  used  to  deco- 
rate wedding  feasts;  some  have  the  shape  of  the  hand  of 
Fatima  which  one  sees  so  often  painted  over  Eastern  doors. 
There  are  counters  which  shut  in  the  dealers,  and  little  seats 
outside  where  one  may  sit  while  testing  and  buying  the  per- 
fumes. The  Moor,  or  Arab,  in  his  big  turban,  really  looks 
*  *  like  a  stuffed  bird  in  a  cage, ' '  as  some  one  has  said ;  but, 
indolent  as  he  looks  and  acts,  he  is  a  subtle  bird. 

At  a  particularly  attractive  **cage,"  the  Other-one  felt  she 
must  indulge  in  some  of  the  famed  odors  of  **  Araby  the 
blest.'*  This  one,  Bashir  informed  them,  was  the  most  select 
and  she  would  find  its  perfumes  the  best  in  the  world.  The 
grave  and  patriarchal  Moor,  arrayed  in  a  pale  green  bur- 
nous edged  with  fine  embroidery  in  pale  yellow,  his  turban  of 
yellow  silk  bound  in  artistic  folds  around  his  head,  brought 
out  many  fascinating  slender  bottles  with  essences  of  jessa- 
mine, rose,  sandal-wood,  verbena,  bergamot,  and  the  perfume 
of  the  Bey,  and  rubbed  on  her  gloveless  hand  a  little  glass 
pencil  from  each.  The  place  was  as  redolent  of  rich  odors 
as  a  flower  garden  in  June,  and  the  Lady  was  so  bewildered 
with  the  combination  of  odors  that  she  could  not  decide  which 
pleased  her  the  most. 

**  Better  take  rose,**  said  the  Commander,  **  if  you  need 
any,  for  you  have  enough  odors  on  your  hand  now,  to  last 
six  months.*' 

While  the  tiny  flask  of  rose  was  being  dripped  from  a  long 
glass  tube,  carefully  corked  and  swathed  in  cotton,  Bashir 
casually  remarked  that  a  client  of  his,  some  time  before,  had 
bought  two  thousand  francs*  worth  of  the  finest  perfumes 
here  at  this  most  reliable  place. 

**  Indeed!*'  exclaimed  the  Other-one.  **  Did  she  intend 
opening  a  perfume  shop  ?  *  * 

**  Oh,  no!  she  is  a  very  rich  American,  and  she  wished  to 
have  some  of  all  the  odors  sold  in  the  East.** 

[  333  ] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

But  when  the  tiny  flask  was  handed  out  with  a  small  quan- 
tity of  rose  and  the  sum  of  twenty  francs  demanded,  the 
Other-one  decided  that,  perhaps,  after  all,  the  * '  so  rich  Ameri- 
can lady ' '  did  not  get  very  much  for  her  two  thousand  francs. 
There  were  not  many  people  here  —  a  few  Arab  dandies  in 
their  light-colored  burnouses  sauntering  along,  and  some 
grave  old  fellows  sitting  by  the  shops. 

*  *  They  do  not  seem  to  sell  much  here, ' '  observed  the  Com- 
mander.   * '  I  presume  it  is  only  the  tourists  who  buy.  *  * 

*'  Oh,  no,**  said  Bashir,  **  all  the  Tunisians,  indeed  all 
Arabs  and  Moors,  are  fond  of  perfumes.  They  not  only  use 
it  to  perfume  themselves,  but  they  put  it  in  coffee  and  in 
their  cigarettes.    Jessamine  is  the  scent  preferred.*' 

The  Lady  was  reluctant  to  leave  this  delightful  souk,  so  full 
of  the  flower-garden  odors.  Her  nostrils  had  been  so  often 
greeted  with  others  far  different  in  most  of  the  Arab  streets 
she  had  wandered  through,  heretofore,  but  Bashir  said  they 
must  hurry  on  as  there  were  many  shops  or  souks,  to  see. 
Then  they  passed  in  the  souk  of  the  tailors,  or  Souk-el-Trouk, 
a  large  and  very  animated  place  and  a  most  attractive  one, 
with  larger  dens  separated  by  columns  from  Carthage,  picked 
out  in  red  and  green  and  with  larger  openings  in  the  wooden 
roof,  letting  in  more  light  but  not  so  stable  looking  as  the 
vaulted  stone  roofing  of  the  perfumers'  souk.  Here  were  the 
stalls  for  making  the  beautiful  burnouses  in  all  those  entranc- 
ing colors  they  had  seen.  In  each  of  the  shops  men  were  work- 
ing, mostly  Jews,  squatting  on  the  floor,  cutting  out  and 
stitching  and  embroidering  on  all  sorts  of  gay  and  soft 
fabrics.  They  were  making  garidouras  in  melting  browns 
with  masses  of  cream  embroidery  worked  on  them,  or  of  crim- 
son with  pale  green  embroidery,  or  blues  with  pale  yellow. 
There  were  gay  jackets  of  red,  yellow,  blue,  or  pale  green,  so 
all  the  place  was  like  the  gay  fields  of  wild  flowers  the  travel- 
lers had  motored  through,  or  the  changes  a  kaleidoscope  takes, 
the  sun  slanting  down  and  lighting  up  the  colors  to  indescrib- 
able richness.  There  were  crowds  of  Arabs  and  Moors  here, 
with  a  sprinkling  of  Europeans  and  eager  or  languid  tourists. 

[334] 


THE   "WHITE   CITY" 

A  curious  thing  was  to  see  men  going  around,  pushing  them- 
selves in  and  out  of  the  crowd,  with  piles  of  gandouras,  bur- 
nouses, and  jackets  on  their  heads,  shouting  the  price  or 
trjdng  to  auction  them  off.  Here  the  Commander  would  fain 
have  lingered,  but  Bashir  gently  but  firmly  led  them  on. 

When  the  Lady  tried  to  separate  from  the  confused  jumble 
of  color,  light,  animated  crowds,  and  all  the  other  fascinating 
Oriental  effects  of  the  morning,  that  which  had  most  inter- 
ested her  and  her  companion,  she  found  that  those  which  most 
delighted  them  were :  first,  the  Souk  of  Chechias  (fezes).  Here 
the  Mussulmans'  red  caps  were  hung  all  over  the  stalls 
along  the  sides  of  the  way,  looking  like  great  beds  of  poppies, 
and  the  big  forms  for  pressing  them  like  abnormal  sugar- 
loaves.  In  one  place  they  were  seen  in  process  of  preparation. 
It  was  almost  inconceivable  that  the  huge  caps  of  coarse,  white 
knitted  wool  should  turn  into  the  natty,  jaunty,  red  fezes  that 
all  Mussulmans  wear.  Bashir  showed  them  where  small  boys 
were  carding  the  shapeless  wool  caps  with  the  horny,  spiny 
seed-vessels  of  a  kind  of  thistle  (teazel)  cultivated  for  the 
purpose,  until  each  becomes  a  big  mass  of  soft  wool.  Bashir 
said  they  were  then  sent  to  Zaghouan  where  is  plenty  of 
water,  and  put  to  soak  for  some  time,  and  then  dyed  and 
pressed  and  turned  out  into  the  proper-looking  fezes.  Some 
of  them  cost  as  much  as  fifty  or  seventy-five  francs,  he  said, 
but  they  last  a  lifetime. 

Next  was  the  Souk-el-Blagdjia  or  souk  of  the  bahouches 
(slippers),  where  the  Other-one  thought  there  were  enough 
yellow  slippers  hung  up  in  the  various  small  dens  to  furnish 
every  native  man,  woman,  and  child,  in  Tunis.  Coarsely 
made,  though,  and  down  at  the  heels,  they  were  ugly  enough. 
This  place  was  not  so  attractive,  though  the  great  sheets  of 
yellow  leather  hung  up  with  the  aforesaid  yellow  slippers  and 
some  of  gay  blue  and  red,  embroidered  in  gold,  gave  an  artis- 
tic value  to  it  as  to  color. 

Then  the  Souk-el- Sekadjine,  or  the  saddlers*,  was  most  in- 
teresting and  delightfully  satisfactory  in  color.  Here  were 
gorgeous   high-backed    crimson    saddles    and    mountings    in 

[335] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

brass;  all  kinds  of  fascinating  leather  bags,  porte-monnaies, 
card-cases,  leather  belts,  rug-straps,  in  red,  yellow,  bronze, 
green,  pale  mauve,  with  gold  and  silver  embroideries,  some 
gay  with  tassels,  and  mostly  of  goatskin;  and  the  Other-one 
felt  life  would  not  be  worth  living  should  she  leave  Tunis 
without  some  of  these  most  fascinating  articles.  The  Com- 
mander drew  her  on,  however,  saying :  *  *  "Wait,  and  we  will 
come  later  for  our  shopping  and  make  a  real  business  of  it. 
We  must  not  load  the  car  down  with  too  much  modern 
trash,  but  I  hope  we  may  find  some  fine  antiques  here."  It 
was  strange  to  see  a  curious  sort  of  painted  sarcophagus  in 
this  gay  souk,  right  in  the  middle  of  the  street,  so  that  the 
busy  tide  of  life  flowed  around  it  in  two  channels  or  beat 
against  it. 

**  What  is  it,"  asked  the  Lady,  "  that  it  should  be  right 
in  the  road?  " 

* '  It  is  the  tomb  of  a  very  holy  marabout,  who  wished  that 
after  he  died  he  might  be  buried  here,  so  that  people  might 
always  have  his  tomb  in  sight  and  make  their  offerings  with- 
out trouble,  as  they  always  do  on  Friday,"  answered  Bashir. 

There  was  one  place  to  which  he  took  them  that  gave  a  note 
of  sadness  to  these  gay  and  fanciful  souks,  and  recalled  the 
fierce  and  wicked  life  led  in  Tunisia  before  the  French  came. 
It  is  near  the  soick  of  the  tailors,  and  is  a  triangular  court 
with  arches  running  around  it  supported  on  ancient  columns. 
It  was  the  old  Slave  Market.  Farther  on  is  another  ancient 
slave  place,  a  sort  of  fondouk,  filthy  now  with  heaps  of  rub- 
bish, but  in  a  way  picturesque  with  its  ancient  columns  and 
arcades.  Here  two  rows  of  cells  run  around;  the  one  above 
was  for  the  men,  the  lower  one  for  the  women.  Bashir  showed 
them  one  column  with  an  open  stone-work  capital;  through 
one  of  the  holes  of  this  a  chain  was  passed  and  attached  to  the 
slave  stationed  for  sale  there.  It  was  a  harrowing,  as  well 
as  filthy  place,  and  the  Two  were  glad  to  escape  from  it. 

As  the  party  passed  a  low  arched  door  looking  like  the  en- 
trance to  a  mosque,  Bashir  suddenly  stopped  and  exclaimed, 
'*  You  must  have  a  cup  of  coffee  in  the  Cafe  of  the  Mosque!  " 

[336] 


THE   "WHITE   CITY" 

Then  he  took  them  under  the  ancient  door  through  a  long 
corridor  with  high  stone  benches  on  each  side,  having  niches 
below  —  for  the  slippers,  Bashir  said,  of  those  who  wished  to 
recline  there.  This  opened  into  a  most  curious  place  with  a 
high  dome  over  the  centre.  At  one  side  was  a  large  pavilion 
supported  by  red  and  green  columns  looking  like  barber  poles, 
the  floor  of  which  was  much  above  the  level  of  the  surround- 
ing room.  On  this  floor  several  very  hilarious  Arabs  were 
reclining,  small  cups  of  coffee  at  their  sides  from  which  they 
were  imbibing  from  time  to  time.  Some  were  engaged  in  a 
game  of  dominos,  others  in  games  of  cards.  They  paid  very 
little  attention  to  the  intruders  except  to  fling  some  welcom- 
ing words  to  Bashir,  whom  everybody  seemed  to  know.  The 
most  curious  sight  in  the  place  was  the  tombs  of  three  mara- 
bouts, high,  plain  boxes,  with  turbans  on  them,  on  a  platform 
at  the  side  of  the  cafe. 

*'  This  was  built  as  a  marabout's  tomb,*'  said  Bashir,  **  but 
they  turned  it  into  a  cafe." 

Around  the  room  were  poor  pictures  of  Moslem  cities, 
which  are  always  seen  in  important  mosques  and  koubbas.  At 
the  back  of  the  cafe  was  the  place  where  the  coffee  was  made 
on  hot  ashes  heaped  upon  a  sort  of  tiled  platform  for  the 
purpose.  Round  this  were  hung  many  tiny  cups,  with  recep- 
tacles for  coffee  and  sugar,  near.  At  Bashir 's  command,  a 
young  Arab  in  a  long  gown,  somewhat  soiled,  took  three 
tiny,  copper,  long-handled  pots,  put  in  some  powdered  coffee, 
with  a  spoon  or  two  of  sugar,  and,  blowing  the  hot  ashes  to  a 
red  glow,  he  set  the  pots  thereon  and  left  them  until  they 
bubbled  over,  then  poured  the  coffee  into  three  tiny  cups. 
The  Two  found  it  steaming  hot,  but  muddy  and  over  sweet, 
though  the  flavor  was  undeniably  delicious.  When  they  had 
scalded  their  mouths  with  a  few  swallows,  they  returned  their 
cups  and  Bashir  led  them  out,  saying  that  this  was  the  place 
to  get  the  best  coffee  in  Tunis. 

The  souk  of  the  stuffs  was  less  gay  in  color  —  though  one 
might  have  expected  to  flnd  it  even  brighter  —  for  the  stuffs 
were  mostly  folded  up  on  the  little  shelves  in  the  dens,  and 

[337] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

the  mercliants  here  seemed  as  indolent  as  those  in  the  souJc  of 
perfumes.  The  Other-one  found  it  fascinating,  however,  for 
there  were  some  things  she  coveted, —  the  long  pieces  of  gayly 
colored  silks,  the  exquisite  sashes  that  the  dandy  Arabs  and 
the  guides  tie  around  their  waists,  and  the  beautiful  spangled 
gauzes ;  but  the  Commander  gently  urged  her  on. 

When  they  had  wandered  long  in  the  fascinating  souks,  the 
guide  took  them  out  by  the  Rue  Sidi-ben-Ahrous,  to  show 
them  the  beautiful  minaret  of  the  mosque  of  that  name,  octag- 
onal in  shape  and  crowned  with  a  charming  pavilion  at  the  top 
and  with  a  roof  of  glistening  green  tiles.  Then  they  went  up 
until  they  came  to  the  Hue  Sidi-ben-Ziad,  with  another  exqui- 
site mosque  and  minaret,  Sidi-ben-Ziad,  also  octagonal  with  a 
pavilion  at  the  top ;  beyond  this  they  came  out  to  the  Dar-el- 
Bey,  or  Palace  of  the  Bey,  which  is  a  plain-looking  building 
outside.  This  palace,  Bashir  said,  was  the  official  residence 
of  the  bey.  Here  foreign  ministers  are  received  and  state 
banquets  held.  Bashir  conducted  his  people  past  the  beylical 
guards  at  the  door,  along  tiled  corridors  to  a  beautiful  court- 
yard with  the  Moorish  arches  in  black  and  white  stripes  of 
marble,  and  marble  columns  upholding  the  colonnade  run- 
ning around.  Here  are  fine  arabesques,  lace-like  work  in 
panels  and  under  the  arches  of  the  barred  windows  opening 
from  the  long  room.  There  are  beautiful  tiles  below  these,  and 
the  court  is  all  paved  with  marble.  Once  there  must  have 
been  a  fountain  here.  Up  narrow  flights  of  stairs  again,  with 
tile  on  all  the  walls,  to  see  some  of  the  beylical  apartments. 

The  throne-room,  or  grand  salon,  where  the  bey  receives 
his  ministers  and  foreign  officers,  was,  from  Bashir 's  point  of 
view,  a  superb  apartment,  with  its  gold-colored  brocade  hang- 
ings, its  gilded  chairs  covered  with  the  same,  and  a  carpet  of 
roses  more  gay  than  one  ever  saw  in  nature,  though  in  a  some- 
what faded  condition.  He  carefully  lifted  the  outer  cover  of 
the  big  chair  in  red  velvet  and  huge  framework  of  gilt  wood, 
and  stood  back  to  see  the  effect.  The  Other-one  looked  around 
the  room  with  its  gaudy  French  hangings,  furniture,  and 
carpet,  comparing  it  in  her  mind  with  the  exquisite  ajourS 

I  338  ] 


THE   "WHITE   CITY" 

work  and  tiles  of  some  of  the  other  rooms  she  had  seen,  and 
—  was  silent. 

Bashir  took  them  to  the  little  windows  which  open  on  to  the 
souks  below  and  showed  them  little  iron  trap  doors  that  can 
be  lifted  so  one  can  easily  look  down  on  the  street. 

**  Here  the  bey  can  sit,  if  he  wishes,  and  not  be  seen,  but 
can  see,  himself,  all  below.'* 

From  here  they  went  through  long  corridors,  all  tiled  also, 
up  some  narrow  stairs  to  the  roof  of  the  palace,  from  which 
they  looked  down  on  the  white  city  lying  below  them  and  ex- 
tending on  all  sides  and  down  to  the  yellow  waters  of  the  lake 
and  the  blue  gulf  beyond.  Just  in  front  is  the  minaret  of  the 
Grand  Mosque  with  its  beautiful,  interlaced  brickwork,  and 
the  upper  story  with  its  graceful  arches  upheld  by  slender 
pillars  just  under  the  lantern  at  the  top.  They  could  even  see 
down  into  its  great  court  with  colonnaded  arches.  Then,  at 
the  left,  a  wonderful  octagonal  minaret  of  the  Djama 
Djedid,  a  complication  of  Moorish,  Arabic,  and  Italian  con- 
struction, of  l>eautiful  coloring.  Other  minarets  shot  up, 
slender  pillars  here  and  there,  which,  with  the  round  white 
domes  of  countless  mosques  and  of  marabouts'  tombs,  gave 
the  city  its  characteristic  Oriental  look,  enhanced  with  green 
of  gardens  and  trees  and  the  glistening  of  iridescent  green 
roofs  on  minarets  and  tombs. 

*'  No  wonder  they  called  it  *  The  White  City.'  It  looks  as 
if  built  of  pure  marble,"  said  the  Lady. 

**  They  called  it  also  *  L'Odorante,'  and  the  *  Burnous  of 
the  Prophet.'  The  kasba  is  the  hood  of  the  burnous  which 
unfolds  toward  the  Port  and  La  Goletta, ' '  added  Bashir. 

There  is  a  line  of  soft  green,  punctuated  with  white  dots 
of  villas,  and  rising  to  a  hill  to  the  side  of  which  are  white 
masses  of  houses:  "  That  is  Carthage  and  the  white  village 
on  the  hill,  Sidi-bou-Said." 

The  Lady  felt  a  thrill  as  she  looked  over  to  that  soft,  blue- 
green  line,  across  the  yellow  lake,  to  the  place  where  stood 
one  of  the  mighty  cities  of  antiquity,  the  theatre  of  events 
tremendous  to  the  ancient  world.    Bashir  went  on  to  say : 

[339] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

'*  That  big  blue  mountain  off  to  the  right  with  two  peaks 
is  Bou-Kornein,  which  means  '  Father  with  the  Two  Heads.' 
The  white  city  at  its  foot  is  Hammam  Lif ,  where  there  is  a  fine 
bathing  beach,  and  where  many  Tunisians  go  in  summer  for 
sea  and  mineral  baths.  The  mountain  back  of  Djebel-bou- 
Kornein,  is  the  Djebel  Ressas,  or  the  '  Mountain  of  Lead/ 
where  are  lead  mines  now  in  full  operation.  The  jagged 
mountain  in  the  far  distance  is  the  Zaghouan,  whence  the 
waters  were  brought  to  Carthage  by  the  aqueduct,  a  part  of 
which  is  still  standing;  and  to-day  it  furnishes  the  water  for 
Tunis." 

He  ceased,  and  all  were  silent  for  a  time.  It  was  indeed  a 
view  to  thrill  any  one,  no  matter  how  often  seen  —  the  beauty 
of  blue  sky  with  ethereal,  summery  clouds  drifting  across  it ; 
the  soft,  melting  blue  of  the  '  Father  with  Two  Heads, '  which 
had  overlooked  all  those  tragic  events  that  swept  Carthage  off 
the  face  of  the  earth. 

Bashir,  for  a  time,  left  his  people  to  think  and  dream  — 
that  excellent  guide  being  sensitive  to  the  moods  of  his  pa- 
trons. Then  he  went  softly  down  the  stairs  with  them  and 
out  to  where  the  carriage  waited.  They  rode  up  the  street  to 
the  kasba,  which  is  now  almost  all  rebuilt  and  converted  into 
barracks  for  soldiers.  They  saw  the  beautiful  minaret  of  its 
ancient  mosque,  the  oldest  in  Tunis.  It  is  considered  the 
finest  in  the  city,  and  dates  back  to  the  thirteenth  century. 
The  mosque  was  once  inside  the  kasba  but  it  has  been  walled 
off  since  the  soldiers  were  placed  in  barracks  there.  There 
are  some  fine  new  buildings  up  in  this  quarter,  in  Moorish 
style,  but  they  looked  startlingly  new  and  huge  to  the  tourists. 

*  *  I  do  not  feel  like  seeing  any  more  palaces  or  even  mu- 
seums this  afternoon,''  said  the  Other-one.  ''  My  Bohemian 
instincts  are  to  the  fore.  Let  us  go  wandering  over  this 
Oriental  city,  even  into  the  souks  again.  Besides  my  soul 
longs  to  shop  and  bargain  in  some  of  those  curious  and  fasci- 
nating dens." 

**And  afterwards,"  said  the  Commander,  **  what  do  you 
say  to  an  automobile  ride  into  the  country?  " 

[340] 


MINARET  OF  SIDI-BENAHROUS,  TUNIS 


PLACE  BAIixtllKA,  WITH  VIEW  OF  THE  MOSQUE  OF 
SIDI-MAHREZ,   TUNIS 


THE  "WHITE  CITY" 

The  desires  of  both  seemed  reasonable  to  Bashir,  and  he 
proposed  that  they  should  take  the  carriage  round  to  the 
Place  Bab-Souika  to  save  too  much  walking,  dismiss  it  there 
and  after  seeing  that  Place,  go  and  visit  an  interesting 
mosque, —  the  much  frequented  Arab  Place  Halfaouine,  then 
go  to  any  shops  or  souks  where  they  wished  to  make  purchases. 

When  they  came  into  the  Bab-Souika  they  found  there  the 
most  typical  and  varied  Arab  life  they  had  yet  seen.  If  it 
had  not  been  for  the  fussy  and  obtrusive  trams,  with  their 
jingling  and  rattling,  the  Two  would  have  believed  themselves 
leagues  away  from  European  civilization.  On  one  side  of 
this  Place  are  tiny  Arab  shops,  some  having  the  most  fasci- 
nating pottery  —  jars,  vases,  water-jugs,  and  what  not  — 
scattered  around  outside  and  in  the  little  dens  and  hung 
everywhere  it  is  possible  to  hang  a  handled  pot  or  jar.  There 
are  the  iron-workers  shops,  but  ugly  and  uninteresting;  then 
in  the  middle  of  the  Place  are  many  booths  —  all  in  a  jumble 
—  some  heaped  high  with  rich  golden  oranges;  some  with 
heaps  of  dried  red  peppers,  so  much  used  in  cous-cous,  and 
yellow  carrots  with  their  feathery  green  tops,  as  well  as  other 
vegetables  less  satisfactory  as  to  color ;  at  one  end  are  booths 
with  piles  of  the  flat  Arabian  loaves.  Here  seethed  and 
foamed  a  mass  of  humanity  composed  of  all  the  elements  of 
the  crowds  they  had  seen, —  the  Arab  dandies,  the  black- veiled 
women,  the  Berber  porters  with  their  sacks  wrapped  round 
their  skinny  black  figures, —  and  the  usual  sprinkling  of 
Arabs,  Moors,  Sicilians,  and  Jews.  As  the  party  crossed  over 
to  look  at  the  pottery  shops,  the  Other-one  saw  two  huge  levia- 
thans waddling  along  not  far  from  them,  wearing  full  trous- 
ers of  white  and  a  sort  of  breakfast  jacket  of  satin,  coming 
just  below  the  waist,  exaggerating  their  stoutness ;  a  handker- 
chief of  flimsy,  fringed  silk  was  pulled  over  a  high,  horned 
cap  worn  on  one  side  of  the  head,  above  their  fat,  puffy 
cheeks. 

**  What  are  they?  '*  she  cried.    *'  Jewesses? '' 

"Yes!  '*  answered  Bashir,  smiling  at  her  look  of  disgust. 
**  And  if  you  want  to  see  them  in  all  their  best  clothes  you 

[341] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

must  visit  Ariana  on  Saturday  afternoon,  for  they  go  to 
promenade  on  that  day,  their  Sabbath." 

**  Are  they  all  as  ridiculously  stout  as  these  specimens?  " 
asked  the  Commander. 

*  *  No !  some  of  the  young  girls  are  slender,  and  some  are 
handsome,  but  in  the  married  women  it  is  considered  their 
greatest  beauty.  That  they  may  mind  their  homes  and  stay 
there,  they  are  encouraged  to  eat  all  sorts  of  things  to  make 
them  fat.** 

This  pottery  here  is  mostly  of  a  pale  yellow,  sun-baked; 
some  jars  have  geometrical  designs  on  them;  some  are  deco- 
rated with  queer  sorts  of  figures  like  those  seen  on  prehistoric 
jars  in  museums;  on  some  there  are  splashes  of  green.  The 
shapes  of  most  are  very  bizarre,  especially  those  which  have 
a  sort  of  perforated  shells  around  them.  These  are  water 
bottles  and  are  intended  to  keep  the  water  cool.  The  Other- 
one  longed  to  invest  in  some  of  the  quaint  jars,  but  the  Com- 
mander suggested  to  her  that  what  might  cost  her  a  franc  or 
two  here,  with  freight,  boxing,  and  duties  would  cost  several 
dollars  in  the  end ;  besides,  being  so  frail,  they  would  probably 
land  at  home,  no  matter  how  well  packed,  a  mass  of  broken 
pottery,  as  he  reminded  her  had  happened  two  or  three  times 
before. 

From  the  square  there  is  the  best  view  of  the  peculiar 
Mosque  of  Sidi  Mahrez  which  has  a  large  white  dome  with 
several  smaller  ones  around  it,  and  is  said  to  have  been  built 
by  a  French  architect,  a  captive  of  one  of  the  corsairs.  Sidi 
Mahrez  was  a  great  saint,  and  his  tomb  is  in  great  repute  — 
even  the  Jews  worshipped  him  here,  he  having  given  them 
many  of  their  privileges. 

From  this  square  the  party  crossed  over  into  the  Place 
Halfaouine,  which  is  a  larger  square  overshadowed  by  the 
Great  Mosque  and  minaret.  This  minaret  the  Commander 
thought  looked  more  like  a  factory  chimney  than  the  usual 
elegant  minaret  of  fanciful  designs.  Here  also  are  a  fountain 
of  Moorish  style,  and  cafes  galore,  the  especial  one  affected  by 

[342] 


THE   "WHITE   CITY" 

rich  Arabs  being  under  the  shadow  of  the  Great  Mosque. 
There  were  a  few  aristocratic  Arab  loiterers  here  now  clad  in 
their  delicate-colored  burnouses,  having  a  rose  or  carnation 
stuck  behind  the  right  ear,  and  wearing  fine  patent-leather 
slippers.  Also  a  sprinkling  of  the  patriarchal  element,  recall- 
ing Abraham,  Isaac,  and  jMoses.  The  best  time  to  come  here 
is  at  five  o'clock  or  after,  when  the  cafes  are  filled  to  over- 
flowing ;  it  being  the  favorite  place  of  the  rich  Tunisian  Arabs 
and  Moors. 

**  How  gay  the  male  bird  is  here  among  the  Arabs!  *'  said 
the  Commander. 

**  Yes!  "  returned  the  Other-one.  **  It  is  the  poor  drab  of 
a  woman  who  is  the  bird  of  dull  plumage,  at  least  in  the 
streets." 

After  this,  they  went  down  some  streets  to  the  richer  Arab 
quarter,  where  many  of  the  houses  are  very  old  and  some  of 
the  streets  are  vaulted  over.  How  cool  it  was  there,  in  spite 
of  the  hot  sunshine  outside!  There  were  no  windows  in  the 
lower  walls  of  these  houses,  but  some  beautiful  doors  with 
Moorish  arches  and  inscriptions  around  them  in  a  band  of 
color,  some  of  them  studded  with  nails,  in  fine  designs. 
Bashir  said  that  this  decoration  of  nails  came  down  from  the 
times  of  Charles  V.  When  some  of  the  wealthy  Moors  com- 
plained that  the  soldiers  invaded  the  sanctity  of  their  homes, 
the  Emperor  ordered  them  to  put  nails  in  their  doors,  and 
any  soldier  caught  entering  these  would  be  punished  severely. 
In  the  stories  above  are  grills  of  richly  carved  wood  or  me- 
shirhiyah  work,  most  of  them  painted  green,  or  rather,  the 
iron  bars  outside. 

**  I  suppose  it  is  difficult  to  see  the  inside  of  any  of  these 
houses,**  said  the  Commander.  **  I  presume  some  of  them  are 
very  beautiful.** 

•*  It  is  very  difficult,**  answered  Bashir  in  a  non-committal 
way. 

**  But  at  least,**  added  the  Other-one,  **  we  have  an  idea  of 
them,  from  the  palaces  we  have  seen.    There  are  the  courts 

[343] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

with  pillars  and  fountains,  the  fine  arabesque  work  and  glo- 
rious tiles.  But  of  course,  there  are  precious  rugs  and  inlaid 
furniture  in  all  the  rooms  of  houses  lived  in/* 

When  they  had  wandered  through  all  the  places  that 
Bashir  deemed  it  best  they  should  see,  they  went  down  to  the 
souks  again  and  into  various  shops  —  some  of  them  up  mys- 
terious staircases,  and  had  an  hour  or  so  of  most  delightful 
shopping  and  bargaining,  at  which  the  Commander  was  an 
adept.  These  were  the  finer  shops  of  great  merchants,  for 
Bashir  would  not  let  them  go  near  the  cheaper  places  where 
touts  shouted  to  them  "  Come  in,  come  in,  see  so  sheap  tings, 
so  beautiful  tings!  '*  It  is  true  that  the  Other-one  longed 
sometimes,  when  passing  some  glittering  spider's  web,  with 
the  instincts  of  a  real  woman,  to  go  in  and  get  a  great  many 
of  those  fascinating  articles  for  very  little  money;  besides, 
there  were  so  many  friends  at  home  to  whom  she  must  take 
gifts  from  these  strange  lands.  But  Bashir 's  eye  was  upon 
her;  his  protecting  presence  surrpunded  her;  she  felt  she 
must  not  disgrace  herself  in  the  eyes  of  that  dignified  guide, 
whose  patrons  were  among  the  wealthy  and  luxurious.  So 
she  humbly  followed  him,  but  like  Lot's  wife,  she  cast  longing 
looks  behind. 

There  were  beautiful  things  in  these  shops  of  the  better 
sort  hung  with  rugs,  resplendent  with  painted  and  gilded 
Moorish  arches,  and  strewn  with  all  kinds  of  fanciful,  mother- 
of-pearl  inlaid  furniture.  There  were  piles  of  rainbow  silks, 
spangled  veils,  wonderful  embroideries,  cases  of  glorious  old 
jewellery,  iridescent  jars,  vases,  and  plaques,  and  a  thousand 
other  things  dear  to  the  heart  of  collectors.  When  the  most 
polite  attendants  —  generally  in  European  dress,  but  always 
with  the  scarlet  fez  —  saw  that  the  Commander  was  a  con- 
noisseur and  skilful  in  bargaining,  they  brought  out  their 
choicest  old  rugs,  their  finest  embroideries,  their  most  antique 
jewellery  —  nothing  of  the  modern  trash  for  this  keen  judge. 
With  a  quick  eye  he  picked  out  among  the  treasures  some 
things  without  which  he  felt  he  could  not  leave  Tunis.  It  is 
true  there  were  a  rug  or  two,  very  old,  in  which  he  indulged, 

[344] 


THE   "WHITE   CITY" 

but  his  principal  treasures  were  some  old  Bedouin  fibulae  of 
fine  chased  silver;  some  wonderful  old  earrings,  big  as  hoops, 
all  hung  with  little  bells;  a  chased  silver  necklace  set  with 
mountain  garnets;  some  bracelets  of  Moorish  work  in  gold 
and  rough  emeralds ;  and  Moorish  earrings,  a  wonder  of  fine 
gold  filigree  and  set  with  many  colored  stones.  All  these 
were,  of  course,  for  the  beloved  museum  —  except  the  rugs. 
The  Other-one  contented  herself  with  a  bag  of  heavy  gold 
embroidery;  a  glittering  scarf  or  two;  and  some  pieces  of 
the  beautiful  striped  Tunisian  silk  for  which  this  city  is 
famous.  The  Commander  added  to  her  store  a  quaint  old 
necklace  of  turquoises  set  in  gilded  silver.  Then  ensued  such 
bargaining  as  made  Bashir  open  his  eyes.  His  patrons  usu- 
ally were  not  given  to  this  sort  of  thing. 

**  There  is  not  much  time  left  before  sundown,**  said  the 
Commander,  regretfully,  *  *  so  our  ride  will  have  to  be  a 
short  one.  Where  sliall  we  go,  Bashir,  but  out  into  the  real 
country?  " 

**  We  will  go  to  the  Belvedere,"  answered  that  resource- 
ful man.    **  The  views  are  beautiful,  and  the  park  is  fine." 

It  is  through  the  Avenue  de  Paris  that  one  generally  rides 
out  of  Tunis  to  the  Belvedere  —  the  famous  modern  park  on  a 
hillside  —  through  an  uninteresting,  dusty,  French  faubourg; 
after  two  kilometres  the  entrance  to  the  park  is  reached.  It 
was  a  relief  to  the  Two  —  after  their  day  of  kaleidoscopic 
color-effects  and  ceaseless  din  and  turmoil  of  Oriental  life 
in  the  city — to  come  into  the  silence  and  greenness  of  the 
Belvedere.  On  this  day  few  Tunisians  are  to  be  seen;  Sun- 
day is  the  great  day  for  excursions  out  of  the  city.  Adrian 
drove  the  car  slowly  up  the  smooth  roads  that  zigzag  around 
the  hill.  The  party  were  silent,  enjoying  the  sight  of  the 
masses  of  blossoming  bushes,  the  grace  of  the  pepper-trees, 
the  vivid  yellow  of  the  genesta  and  mimosa  tassels,  the  snow 
of  great  bushes  of  marguerites  bordering  some  of  the  beds. 
When  they  had  come  to  a  pavilion  near  the  summit  of  the 
hill  toward  the  south,  they  got  out  and  went  up  to  an  open 
space  around  which  benches  were  ranged.     From  here  the 

[345] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

view  extended  in  all  directions;  but  now,  instead  of  an 
ivory  and  marble-white  Tunis  which  they  had  seen  by  morn- 
ing light,  they  gazed  toward  the  south,  over  billowing  masses 
of  green,  at  a  pink  flushed  city,  for  the  sun  was  dropping 
down  the  west.  Behind  Tunis,  Bou-Kornein  and  Eessas  were 
rosy  purple,  and  the  misty  Zaghouan  showed  his  notched  out- 
lines against  a  pale  rose  sky.  Lake  Bahira,  to  the  east  of 
the  city,  had  such  gleams  in  its  muddy  yellow  as  a  dull  brass 
jar  has,  when  it  is  filled  with  pink  blossoms  that  droop 
over  and  cast  reflections  on  it.  The  line  of  shore  at  the  east, 
where  once  was  ancient  Carthage,  spread  thrillingly  soft  up 
to  Sidi-bou-Said^s  village,  now  also  tinted  with  rose;  Bashir 
pointed  out  the  heights  of  Cape  Bon  beyond  it.  At  the  north 
the  hills  of  olive-trees  were  dark,  and  at  the  west  were  now 
seen  the  indistinct  lines  of  the  arches  of  the  old  aqueduct. 
Who  could  look  upon  this  glorious  view,  especially  toward 
old  Carthage,  and  not  feel  a  quickening  of  his  soul! 

Bashir  then  took  his  people  to  see  the  beautiful  pavilion 
which  had  been  taken  from  an  old  Arabian  house  going  to 
ruins  at  Manouba,  and  brought,  piece  by  piece,  and  set  up 
here  in  a  beautiful  spot  surrounded  with  bushes  of  flowering 
marguerites,  whose  snowy  blooms  were  not  whiter  than  the 
panels  of  the  beautiful  lace-like  arabesque  stucco-work  on 
the  ceilings  and  walls  of  this  pavilion,  where  fanciful  fairy 
columns  uphold  the  stilted  arches  and  white  cupolas. 

The  next  day  being  Friday,  and  the  Mussulman's  Sabbath, 
Bashir  was  a  little  late  in  coming  for  his  people,  so  they 
decided  it  would  be  better  to  wait  until  after  lunch  for  going 
to  the  Bardo,  as  the  museum  closes  at  half -past  eleven.  When 
at  length  they  started,  Bashir  took  them  round  the  walls  by 
the  old  double  gate  of  Bab-el-Khadra,  which  is  like  a  fortress 
with  its  square  towers  and  places  for  sentinels  and  its  bat- 
tlemented  top.  Then  at  the  gate  of  Bab  Saadoun, —  which 
has  two  little  impertinent  lookout  towers  at  the  top,  and 
triple  arches  through  which  the  trams  jingle  to  circle  around 
the  Medina  quarter,  they  turned  west  for  the  Bardo  under 
the  shadow  of  one  of  the  high  arches  of  an  aqueduct  in  good 

[  346  ] 


THE  "WHITE   CITY" 

preservation.  This  was  said  to  be  an  ancient  Roman  one,  but 
reconstructed  by  the  Spaniards  during  their  occupation. 

When  the  French  came  to  Tunis,  the  Bardo  was  a  vast 
collection  of  palaces  and  different  edifices,  built  by  the  suc- 
cessive beys.  When  one  died  in  a  palace,  it  was  considered 
unlucky  for  his  successor  to  live  in  it,  so  it  was  allowed  to 
fall  into  decay.  This  conglomeration  of  buildings  covered 
a  number  of  acres  and  was  surrounded  by  a  wall  with  bastions 
and  towers.  As  most  of  these  constructions  were  in  a  ruinous 
state  and  threatening  to  fall,  many  were  demolished,  and 
those  retained  were  restored.  At  the  south  a  public  garden 
has  been  laid  out ;  at  the  side  toward  the  north,  are  the  bar- 
racks for  the  beylical  soldiers ;  a  mosque  and  a  ruined  Moor- 
ish bath  are  at  the  bottom  of  the  garden.  At  the  west  of  these 
are  the  Bey's  Palace  of  State  and  an  ancient  harem,  recon- 
structed into  the  museum  called  Alaoui,  the  most  important 
museum  of  antiquities  in  North  Africa. 

The  car  entered  the  grounds  and  drew  up  before  the  door 
of  the  museum.  The  Two  stopped  to  admire  the  masses  of 
flowers  blooming  in  the  beds,  gay  in  the  brilliant  sunshine, 
before  they  walked  into  the  corridors  and  halls  of  the  museum 
and  went  wandering  away  into  past  ages.  In  the  rooms 
opening  off  the  vaulted  vestibules  of  the  ground  floor  there 
are  many  ex-votive  offerings,  with  the  compartments  and  fig- 
ures in  relief  of  the  god  Saturn  and  the  animal  sacrificed 
in  the  compartment  at  the  bottom, —  similar  to  what  the  party 
had  seen  in  the  museum  at  Algiers,  but  of  much  ruder  work- 
manship and  coming  from  various  Punic-Roman  sanctuaries 
(so  the  placards  stated)  consecrated  to  Baal,  the  Roman 
Saturn,  and  to  Tamit,  the  goddess  Ceres,  many  having  been 
brought  from  Carthage.  Here  are  sarcophagi,  Pagan  and 
Christian,  generally  of  rather  poor  work.  What  interested  the 
Commander  and  the  Lady  very  much  were  some  curious 
squares  in  red  unglazed  clay  hung  on  the  walls  of  one  of 
the  corridors  and  unlike  anything  they  had  ever  seen  before. 
These  had  rude  reliefs  of  subjects  from  the  Old  Testament  — 
Adam  and  Eve,  the  Sacrifice  of  Isaac,  Daniel  in  the  Lions' 

[347] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

Den,  and  so  forth  —  as  well  as  various  animals.  These  were 
used  to  decorate  the  walls  of  various  Christian  basilicas  of 
the  fifth  and  sixth  centuries.  They  were  from  North  Africa, 
some  coming  from  Carthage,  and  some  from  Bulla  Regia. 

Here  was  a  colossal  Apollo  with  the  cithara ;  a  grave  Escu- 
lapius  with  his  snake;  one  the  triad  of  Phoenician  divin- 
ities, Echmoun,  the  god  of  Medicine;  and  Ceres,  the  Punic 
goddess  Tamit,  another  of  the  triad.  In  the  centre  of  the 
hall  was  a  beautiful  Minerva,  headless,  but  with  lovely  lines 
in  drapery  and  pose.  *  *  This  was  probably  the  choicest  treas- 
ure in  one  of  those  Roman  houses  we  saw  at  BuUia  Regia. 
"What  lovely  eyes  may  have  looked  at  the  statue!  What  aes- 
thetic Roman  youths  paused  before  it  admiring  its  grace ! ' ' 
said  the  sentimental  Other-one. 

Going  up  the  staircase  one  comes  into  a  great  hall  which 
was  once  the  ancient  court  of  the  palace.  It  is  surrounded 
by  a  portico  which  has  a  gallery  above  it.  The  mosaic  in  the 
centre  of  the  court  is  one  of  the  most  beautiful  ever  taken 
from  an  ancient  city  in  North  Africa,  and  represents  Bac- 
chus giving  the  present  of  the  vine  to  Attica,  king  of  Ithaca, 
with  charming  Cupids  carrying  baskets  of  grapes  or  filling 
them  from  the  vines.  This  wonderful  and  enormous  mosaic 
came  from  Oudna,  a  ruined  city  which  is  on  the  road  to  Zag- 
houan,  the  great,  misty,  jagged  mountain  seen  from  the 
heights  of  Tunis.  In  the  patio  are  groups  and  fragments  of 
marble  and  statues  coming  from  the  Odeon  of  Carthage,  which 
were  thrown  into  the  cisterns  of  the  edifice  when  they  wished 
to  destroy  them,  and  were  so  broken  up  that  it  was  neces- 
sary to  cement  them  together  piece  by  piece  to  give  the  idea 
of  the  ancient  statues. 

Then  the  Two  went  into  the  hall  of  the  fetes^  which  has  a 
curious,  if  not  beautiful,  ceiling  in  wood  carved,  gilded,  and 
painted  in  striking  colors.  Here  are  fine  mosaics  brought 
from  Sousse,  Tabarca,  and  other  towns  of  antiquity.  There 
are  cases  of  Roman  lamps  in  all  shapes  and  styles.  In 
another  hall  there  are  mosaics  from  the  amphitheatre  of 
Djem,  where  our  Motorists  were  planning  to  go  soon.     The 

[348] 


THE   "WHITE   CITY" 

whole  place  bristled  with  mosaics  of  more  or  less  fanciful 
designs,  and  more  or  less  fine  in  finish.  The  gem  of  the 
whole  place  was  the  beautiful  apartments  in  the  harem  at  the 
end  of  the  big  court,  a  flight  of  fine  steps  going  up  to  them. 
The  travellers  exclaimed  when  they  came  into  the  hall,  at 
the  beauty  and  purity  of  the  decorations.  First  came  a  hall 
in  the  form  of  a  Greek  cross,  with  the  most  exquisite  panels 
of  arabesque  stucco-work,  as  if  lace,  in  delicate  filmy  pat- 
terns, were  hung  there,  of  the  most  marvellous  fineness, — 
the  nouch  hadida  work  —  a  lost  art  to-day.  Some  of  the  gems 
of  the  ancient  cities  are  here.  The  Other-one  was  enamoured 
of  the  beautiful  statuette  of  Demeter  or  Ceres.  It  came 
from  Carthage  and  is  in  a  glass  case  at  the  side  of  the  hall. 
It  is  of  tinted  marble,  with  traces  of  gilding  and  exquisitely 
lovely  in  pose  and  figure.  There  is  an  interesting  mosaic 
portrait  of  Virgil,  seated  between  Clio,  the  Muse  of  History, 
and  Melpomene,  the  Muse  of  Tragedy.  Virgil  holds  a  roll 
of  papyrus  open  on  his  knees  with  one  of  the  first  verses  of 
the  ^neid.  It  is  a  work  of  the  first  century  A.  D.,  and  came 
from  Sousse,  the  ancient  Hadramentum. 

From  this  they  went  down  into  the  apartments  of  one  of 
the  wives  of  the  Bey  Mohammed,  in  which  is  now  installed  the 
Arabian  department.  When  he  wished  to  separate  from  her  he 
had  this  constructed  for  her.  It  is  a  little  gem  of  an  apartment 
with  its  tiles  and  ajoiire  ceiling  and  halls,  and  is  fitted  with 
all  sorts  of  Arabian,  pearl-inlaid  furniture,  jars,  rugs,  pot- 
tery, tiles,  lamps.  Though  overloaded,  it  gives  one  a  very 
good  idea  of  what  an  Arabian  house  is  like.  The  pretty  little 
court  with  the  fountain  and  plants  and  the  sun  streaming 
down,  was  cheerful  and  bright  to  a  degree.  The  long  T-shaped 
room  beyond  the  court  is  an  alcove  with  a  great  bed  of  sculp- 
tured, gilded  wood ;  hanging  near  it  a  glass  in  an  ornate  gold 
frame;  a  great  inlaid  coffer  stands  near  by  it,  and  rugs  are 
spread  all  over  the  floor.  There  is  no  light  but  what  comes 
from  the  wide  door  opening  into  the  court,  and  a  very  little 
from  the  characteristic  small,  high  windows  filled  with  rounds 
of  colored  glass.     In  the  recess  opposite  the  door  are  long 

[349] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

divans  with  many  fanciful  cushions  and  little  inlaid  mother- 
of-pearl  tables  near,  having  tiny  cups  and  perforated  per- 
fume burners  on  them.  In  the  little  room  opening  off  at  one 
side  are  more  cases  of  necklaces,  fibulae,  bracelets,  belt-buc- 
kles, earrings,  and  finger  rings,  coming  from  Tunis,  Moknine 
(where  jewellery  in  Byzantine  style  is  still  made  to-day), 
Gabes,  and  Algeria.  Here  the  Commander  was  delighted  to 
find  that  there  was  not  an  anklet,  a  fibula,  or  a  necklace,  as 
fine  as  those  he  himself  had  picked  up  during  his  motoring. 

Quitting  the  Alaoui  Museum,  the  Two  followed  Bashir  to 
the  Palace  of  the  Bey,  his  official  summer  palace,  and  where 
he  holds  his  criminal  court  and  orders  executions.  The  stair- 
case leading  up  to  it  is  of  white  marble  with  the  famous  lions 
in  Italian  work.  The  lions  look  extremely  breezy  and  con- 
tented with  themselves.  Bashir  followed  his  party  up  these 
steps  but  was  waved  aside  by  an  important  official  in  a  red 
fez,  and  he  reluctantly  abandoned  them  at  the  door  leading 
to  the  big  white  court  surrounded  by  a  colonnade.  The  bey- 
lical  guard  rushed  them  up  a  staircase,  from  one  room  to 
another,  his  mind  apparently  intent  on  the  fee  he  expected 
to  receive.  The  first  room  entered  was  a  high,  long  hall 
covered  with  the  usual  gay  French  carpet,  and  with  a  plat- 
form at  the  end  on  which  was  another  huge  gilded  armchair. 
Around  the  walls  hung  very  indifferent  portraits  of  former 
beys  and  of  the  present  one  —  a  very  stout  person  with  a  coat 
much  decorated  in  gold  braid  and  many  orders.  Also  there 
were  portraits  of  some  European  sovereigns,  including  Queen 
Victoria,  all  looking  very  stiff  and  uncomfortable.  On  the 
gilt  and  ormolu  tables  along  the  walls  were  innumerable 
clocks  of  every  style  and  size,  presents  to  the  beys. 

The  Hall  of  the  Glasses,  Salon  des  Glaces,  was  more  sat- 
isfactory than  the  big  halls  as  to  the  ceiling,  which  is  of  a 
Moorish  design,  with  gilded  circles  enclosing  pieces  of  mir- 
ror; but  the  walls  are  covered  with  slabs  of  Italian  marble, 
looking,  as  one  author  puts  it,  **  like  slices  of  brawn.*' 

*  *  We  ought  to  have  Bashir  with  us  to  tell  us  something 


[350] 


THE  "WHITE   CITY" 

about  these  rooms,  for  this  guard  has  no  idea  but  to  get  us 
through  here  as  quickly  as  possible,'*  said  the  Other-one; 
**  but  I  know  that  here,  in  1881,  the  treaty  recognizing  the 
French  Protectorate  was  signed,  and  that  the  bey  gives  big 
receptions  here  during  the  important  Mohammedan  fetes.*' 

The  guard  joyously  left  the  Two  at  the  entrance  of  another 
white,  colonnaded  court,  and,  having  secured  his  fee,  con- 
signed them  to  the  care  of  red-fezed  official  number  two, 
who  showed  them  one  or  two  more  rooms  and  the  big  Hall 
of  Justice,  part  of  it  railed  off  and  with  benches  around  the 
outer  division.  Here  is  the  place  where,  from  the  big  red 
chair,  the  beys  used  to  render  their  decisions  on  a  man  con- 
demned to  death,  whether  he  should  be  executed  at  once  or 
reprieved,  by  the  sign  of  the  bey 's  thumbs,  up  or  down.  The 
criminal  was  taken  at  once  through  the  low  doors  which  the 
guardian  pointed  out  at  the  end  of  the  hall  opposite 
the  throne-chair,  and  despatched  without  ceremony.  Now,  he 
said,  all  executions  took  place  at  La  Marsa,  which  is  where 
the  bey's  palace  is,  and  where  he  lives  most  of  the  time. 

Then  the  official  took  them  down  into  the  beautiful  White 
CJourt  and  bowed  them  out,  but  looked  as  if  he  thought  the 
one  franc  fee  too  little  for  so  important  a  man  as  himself. 

**  How  astonishing  it  is  that  the  modern  beys  have  so  degen- 
erated in  taste,  when  they  have  such  beautiful  architectural 
inheritances.  They  seem  to  run  now  to  decorations  in  the 
worst  French  or  Italian  taste,  to  red  velvet  chairs,  cabbage- 
rose  carpets,  and  multitudinous  gilt  clocks,*'  said  the  Com- 
mander, as  they  walked  down  past  the  white  marble  lion 
steps  and -climbed  into  the  car.  **  Now,"  he  exclaimed, 
with  a  sigh  of  relief  and  a  brightening  of  his  countenance, 
which  had  been  rather  sombre  looking  the  past  hour,  **  we 
are  through  with  sight-seeing!  Where  shall  we  go,  Bashir? 
As  far  away  from  the  city  as  possible  in  the  time  left ! ' ' 

**  It  is  only  sixteen  kilometres  to  La  Goletta,  where  is  the 
ancient  canal  cut  through  from  the  lake  to  the  sea  and 
the  old  port  of  Tunis.     The  roads  are  good,  though  a  part 

[351] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

of  the  way  is  on  the  road  to  Carthage  to  which  I  shall  hope 
to  go  with  you  to-morrow,  returning  by  the  way  of  Ariana  to 
see  the  Jewesses,  Saturday,  promenading  there." 

"  To  La  Goletta,  by  all  means !  ' '  answered  the  Commander. 

As  they  approached  this  village,  not  far  from  the  Lake  of 
Tunis,  they  could  see  a  great  vessel  going  slowly  through  the 
canal  with  the  yellow  waters  of  the  lake  this  side  and  beyond. 

* '  The  color  of  the  Lake  of  Tunis  is  owing  to  the  sediment 
brought  down  and  deposited  there  in  rainy  seasons  by  the 
River  Medjerda,"  said  the  Commander. 

There  is  a  pretty  island  in  the  lake,  with  an  old  building 
on  it,  the  Chikli. 

"  Some  say,"  said  Bashir,  in  reply  to  the  Lady's  question 
in  regard  to  it,  ''  that  it  is  an  old  Turkish  fort;  others  that 
it  is  the  ruins  of  a  castle  built  by  Charles  V." 

*'  I  wonder  if  we  shall  see  any  cloud  of  flamingos  *  burst- 
ing into  rose-pink  '  as  they  rise,  of  which  all  writers  of  Tunis 
speak,"  said  the  Other-one,  straining  her  eyes  over  the  lake; 
but  no  such  enchanting  sight  greeted  them.  The  afternoon 
was  not  the  time  to  see  them,  Bashir  said,  but  there  were  the 
picturesque  sails  of  the  fishermen's  boats,  and  at  the  turn  of 
the  road  to  La  Goletta  they  saw  the  long  line  of  pale  blue- 
green  of  Carthage  rising  to  Sidi-bou-Said. 

They  found  Goletta  a  picturesque,  Venetian-looking  town, 
with  its  ancient  canal  on  which  floated  one  or  two  cargo 
boats.  It  is  rather  **  down  at  the  heel"  now,  like  Venice.  It 
is  built  on  the  spit  of  sand  between  the  Lake  of  Tunis  and 
the  sea  and  across  the  canal,  and  was  the  ancient  seaport 
of  Tunis,  but  has  lost  its  importance  now  that  the  new  canal 
has  been  cut  through  the  lake  to  that  city.  The  Arabs  call  the 
town  Foum-el-Oued,  or  mouth  of  the  canal,  and  Haik-el- 
Oued,  or  throat  of  the  canal.  The  French  name  is  La  Gou- 
lette.  Long  tongues  of  land  stretch  up  to  Carthage,  right 
and  left  of  the  canal.  There  are  two  quarters,  Old  and  New 
Goletta.  On  the  right  side  of  the  canal  are  the  town  and 
an  old  palace  and  harem  of  the  bey  and  an  ancient  arsenal. 
The  left  bank  has  the  ancient  kasba  and  an  old  Spanish- 

[  352  ] 


THE   "WHITE   CITY" 

Turkish  fortress  now  turned  into  barracks  for  French 
soldiers.  In  the  sixteenth  century  La  Goletta  was  the  scene 
of  important  events.  It  was  taken  by  Charles  V  and  thou- 
sands of  Christian  slaves  were  liberated.  Then  the  Spaniards 
fortified  it  strongly  as  a  base  of  supplies  during  their  dom- 
ination. It  was  strongly  reinforced  in  1573  by  John  of  Aus- 
tria, but  was  reconquered  by  the  Turks  the  next  year,  under 
Sinan  Pacha,  after  a  terrible  struggle  and  a  memorable  siege. 
It  is  of  much  interest  to  the  Roman  Catholics  from  the  fact 
that  St.  Vincent  de  Paul  was  a  prisoner  here  in  the  seventeenth 
century. 

La  Goletta  is  the  port  of  shipment  for  the  iron  ore  of  Cen- 
tral Tunisia;  the  fishing  fleet  numbers  a  hundred  boats, 
some  of  which  work  in  the  lake  and  some  in  the  gulf.  In 
the  warm  weather  it  is  a  bathing-place  much  visited  by  the 
Jews  of  Tunis. 

On  the  return  the  travellers  saw  that  the  large  vessel  they 
had  seen  coming  down  was  nearing  Tunis. 

**  That  was  a  great  scheme,**  observed  the  Commander, 
**  to  put  Tunis  in  direct  communication  with  the  sea  by  means 
of  a  canal  through  the  shallow  lake.  I  believe  it  was  the 
late  bey  who  first  thought  of  it,  and  he  gave  a  concession  for 
it.  Plans  and  bids  were  asked  for  later,  and  given  by  a 
company,  and  accepted  by  the  French  Government.  The  port 
was  begun  in  1892  and  completed  in  1897.  The  canal  is 
seven  miles  long,  ninety-three  feet  wide,  and  twenty-one  feet 
deep.  It  is  practicable  for  ships  of  large  tonnage.  In  the 
centre  the  canal  was  widened  enough  to  permit  of  vessels 
passing  one  another.'* 

When  the  Other-one  parted  with  Bashir  that  night,  she 
said:  **  To-morrow  is  for  Carthage,  and  I  hope  we  are 
to  have  our  nice  guide  to  show  us  everything  to  see  there,  and 
that  the  American  family  will  be  in  no  hurry  to  arrive  here  I  '* 

**  They  are  sure  not  to  come  for  a  day  or  so  yet,**  replied 
Bashir,  *  *  so  I  am  ready  to  go  anywhere  with  you.  You  wish 
to  see  all,  but  some  I  have  care  not.  They  wish  to  ride  to  some 
place,  take  a  cup  of  tea  or  coffee,  and  return  at  once !  '* 

[  353  ] 


CHAPTER  XXII 

TO   CARTHAGE  AND   RETURN  BY   ARIANA 

THE  night  before  the  trip  to  Carthage  the  Commander 
came  up  early  after  dinner.  * '  Come, ' '  he  said,  ' '  read 
me  something,  or  tell  me,  about  ancient  Carthage.  We  both 
know  a  little  about  its  history,  and  Hannibal  has  always  been 
one  of  your  favorite  heroes,  but  I  confess  —  and  I  am  sure 
you  also  do  —  to  being  rather  hazy  about  most  of  the  events 
that  took  place  there."  He  stretched  himself  comfortably 
in  an  armchair  near  the  table  where  were  his  beloved  maps, 
and  the  Other-one  began  with  much  content: 

**  We  must  be  prepared  to  be  greatly  disappointed,  if  we 
expect  to  find  many  ruins  of  ancient  Carthage  left.  What  we 
shall  see  will  be  more  Roman  remains  than  Punic.  Carthage, 
as  you  know,  is  the  most  famous  historical  city  in  Africa. 
It  is  generally  said  to  have  been  founded  about  850  B.  C.  by 
a  Phcenician  colony.  The  fabled  history  is  that  Queen  Dido, 
fleeing  from  her  brother  Pygmalion,  who  had  assassinated  her 
husband,  came  with  the  Tyrians  to  this  place  and  founded 
the  city  of  Cart-hadshat,  which  the  Romans  made  Carthago 
afterwards.  Dido  is  said  to  have  purchased  from  the  early 
inhabitants  as  much  land  as  a  bull's  hide  would  cover,  but 
she  cunningly  had  the  hide  cut  into  narrow  strips  and  sur- 
rounded the  land  she  wished  to  have ;  so  this  hill,  thus  encom- 
passed, was  called  the  Byrsa,  from  the  word  meaning  a  hide. 
Around  the  Byrsa  houses  and  suburbs  sprang  up  later  in 
all  directions  and  all  along  the  sea  shore,  beyond  where  Sidi- 
bou-Said  is  now.  Carthage,  being  near  the  mouth  of  the 
important  river  called  to-day  the  Medjerda,  in  proximity  to 
Sicily  and  nearly  on  the  arm  of  the  sea  which  unites  the 
Western  Mediterranean  with  the  Eastern,  was  splendidly  sit- 

[354] 


TO   CARTHAGE 

uated  on  the  shores  of  the  large,  well-protected  Bay  of  Tunis, 
and  it  became  exceedingly  prosperous. 

*  *  The  riches  of  Carthage  were  immense.  Her  traders  trav- 
elled all  over  the  Mediterranean,  trafficed  with  the  Soudan, 
visited  Great  Britain  and  the  Atlantic  coast  of  Africa.  The 
power  and  prosperity  of  this  city  remained  undisturbed  for 
more  than  seven  hundred  years.  Then  began  the  struggle 
between  Rome  and  Carthage,  called  the  Punic  wars,  for  the 
possession  of  Sicily,  Spain,  and  Africa,  and  they  lasted  for 
one  hundred  years. 

**  The  First  Punie  War  was  a  strife  between  Rome  and 
Carthage  for  Sicily  and  went  on  for  twenty  years.  This 
ended  in  the  loss  of  that  island  to  Carthage,  and  also  her 
prowess  on  the  sea,  242  B.  C. 

**  In  the  Second  Punic  War,  this  city  was  deprived  of  her 
fleet  and  her  colonial  possessions.  In  this  war,  the  famous 
Hannibal  was  concerned,  being  recalled  from  Italy  where  he 
had  been  engaged  in  fighting  the  Romans,  with  varying  suc- 
cess, for  sixteen  years.  He  returned  to  Africa,  203  B.  C, 
landed  at  Hadramentum  (Sousse),  was  joined  by  Massenissa, 
and  took  command  of  50,000  men  and  eighty  elephants  at 
Zanna  where  Scipio,  the  Roman,  gave  them  battle.  Notwith- 
standing his  great  generalship  and  prestige,  Hannibal  was  en- 
tirely routed  and  compelled  to  abandon  Carthage  to  his  rival. 
Peace  was  concluded  and  this  city  became  the  subject  of 
Rome ;  thus  ended  the  Second  Punic  War.  Hannibal  then  de- 
voted himself  to  the  regeneration  and  resurrection  of  his 
country,  but  the  Roman  senate  demanded  again  and  again  his 
surrender  and  he  finally  swallowed  poison  and  died,  183 
B.  C.  Rome  and  Carthage  remained  at  peace  some  fifty 
years,  then  at  the  instigation  of  Cato,  the  Elder,  hostilities 
were  begun  once  more.  Carthage  fell  again,  all  her  public 
buildings  and  fortifications  were  destroyed.  Even  after  this 
it  remained  a  city  of  commercial  importance.  Caesar,  after 
having  destroyed  the  party  of  Pompey  in  Africa,  gave  some 
attention  to  Carthage,  and  Augustus  also  did  the  same. 
Thanks  to  its  geographical  position,  it  quickly  responded  and 

[355] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

became  again  a  city  of  luxury  and  pleasure  as  well  as  of 
study.  Christianity  was  introduced  here  at  the  end  of  the 
second  century.  The  Roman  emperors  wishing  to  exterminate 
it,  bitterly  persecuted  Africa,  especially  Carthage.  Many 
noble  ladies,  like  Felicitas  and  Perpetua,  were  given  up  to  the 
wild  beasts  in  the  amphitheatre  there. 

**  In  the  fourth  century  St.  Augustine  became  prominent 
here,  first  as  a  teacher,  then  as  a  priest. 

**  Carthage  was  taken  by  the  Vandals  in  439,  and  became 
the  capital  of  Genseric  and  his  successors.  Belisarius  occu- 
pied it  in  the  name  of  Justinian,  emperor  of  Constantinople. 
The  Byzantines  kept  it  more  than  sixty  years.  At  the  end  of 
the  seventh  century,  it  was  captured  by  the  Arabs  and  ruined 
by  them  forever;  so  of  all  the  glory  and  splendor  that  once 
was  Carthage's,  there  is  nothing  left.  It  is  now  but  an  enor- 
mous field  of  ruins,  which  has  served  for  a  quarry  for  Tunis 
and  for  the  Italians.  It  is  said  that  the  cathedral  at  Pisa  was 
mostly  constructed  of  materials  brought  from  Carthage.  In 
1270,  during  the  crusade  against  Tunis,  St.  Louis  camped 
there  and  died  of  the  plague.  A  chapel  commemorative  of 
this  saint  was  built  on  the  Byrsa,  which  then  became  the  hill 
of  St.  Louis;  in  recent  times  several  religious  edifices  were 
built  here  also,  at  the  instigation  of  Cardinal  Lavigerie,  who 
wanted  to  take  possession  of  Carthage  in  the  name  of  Chris- 
tian France.  In  these  last  years,  some  villas  and  restaurants 
have  been  constructed  there. 

**  Before  the  French  occupation  the  antiquities  and  ruins 
all  over  Tunisia  were  abandoned  to  their  fate  by  the  authori- 
ties, and  no  steps  were  ever  taken  to  put  a  stop  to  the  vandal- 
ism of  amateur  collectors  or  of  dealers  in  antiquities ;  but  for 
several  years  the  newly  created  Service,  or  Direction  of  Antiq- 
uities, assisted  by  the  energetic  explorer  and  archaeologist, 
the  Rev.  Pere  Delattre,  have  been  busily  engaged  in  search 
for  antiquities  at  Carthage." 

**  It  seems,"  said  the  Lady,  laying  down  her  book,  **  that 
they  have  discovered  parts  of  a  wall  one  hundred  and  fifty 
feet  long  and  eighteen  feet  high.    It  was  made  of  amphorae, 

[  356  ] 


BEDOUIN  WOMAN,  IN  THE  RUINS  OF  THE  OI'KuN 
OF  CARTHAGE 


KUINS  OF  THE  AQUEDUCT  THAT  CAREIED  WATER 
TO  ANCIENT  CARTHAGE 


PUNIC  TOMBS  AT  CARTHAGE 


TO   CARTHAGE 

or  wine  jars,  in  layers.  Many  Punic  and  Roman  cemeteries, 
Roman  cisterns,  Roman  roads,  Roman  houses,  and  a  sub- 
terranean chapel  have  been  uncovered,  as  well  as  the  ruins 
of  a  great  church,  which  is  called  now  Damous-el-Karita. 
You  will  be  much  interested  in  the  museum  of  which  the 
books  speak.  It  is  called  the  Lavigerie  Museum  after  the 
Cardinal,  and  here  are  collected  all  the  objects  found  in 
the  Punic  and  Roman  as  well  as  the  Christian  tombs.  It  is  in 
the  Grande  Seminaire  which  was  inaugurated  in  1881  by 
Cardinal  Lavigerie,  as  a  college  for  the  White  Fathers,  whom 
he  intended  to  be  missionaries  in  North  Africa.  They  wear 
a  white  burnous  and  a  red  fez.  On  the  Byrsa  is  the  Cathe- 
dral of  St.  Louis,  which  the  Cardinal  built  also.  He  is  buried 
here  and  a  great  monument  has  been  erected  to  him.'* 

It  was  under  a  brilliantly  blue  sky  and  a  golden  sun  send- 
ing its  rays  do^vn  on  La  Ville  Blanche,  that  our  Motorists  set 
forth  on  their  pilgrimage  to  the  place  where  once  was  the 
Punic  city.  The  road  over  which  they  went  was  the  one 
they  had  taken  to  La  Goletta.  They  turned  north  before 
coming  to  that  village  and  beheld,  afar,  the  green  height 
which  was  once  Byrsa,  crowned  now  with  the  white  Church 
of  St.  Louis,  with  its  high  spires,  and  the  white  buildings  of 
the  College  of*  the  White  Fathers  showing  behind  it.  The 
car  wound  up  this  hill  and  came  out  on  the  terrace  before 
the  gate  and  walls  which  enclose  the  grounds  of  the  college. 
Here,  on  the  edge  of  the  terrace,  is  the  primitive  hotel  where 
Bashir  said  they  were  to  lunch  after  visiting  the  ruins;  and 
later  they  were  to  go  to  see  the  museum.  That  excellent  man 
had  all  planned,  and  although  like  many  guides,  he  was 
masterful,  he  had  withal  what  most  guides  have  not,  an 
instinctive  sympathy  and  understanding  of  the  needs  and 
limitations  of  his  patrons.  While  he  went  in  to  give  orders 
about  the  luncheon  the  Two  wandered  to  the  edge  of  the 
terrace,  where  the  land  drops  away  and  a  little  railing  is 
built  as  a  guard. 

It  was  a  beautiful  and  historic  scene  upon  which  they 
looked,  but  one  which  in  no  way  gave  them  the  feeling  that 

[357] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

once  a  splendid  and  powerful  city  had  covered  the  plain  below 
and  the  hills  beyond ;  nor  did  it  give  any  hint  of  the  agony, 
the  bloodshed,  and  all  the  other  horrors  of  the  wars  which 
had  once  raged  there.  It  was  a  smiling  and  green  landscape, 
dotted  with  white  villas  here  and  there  and  bordered  with 
the  glorious  turquoise  blue  of  the  gulf  —  as  beautiful  and 
pastoral  a  scene  as  could  be  well  imagined.  No  ruins  were 
anywhere  visible,  but  when  Bashir  joined  them  he  pointed 
out,  far  below  on  the  right,  two  small,  almost  circular  bodies 
of  water,  that  glistened  in  the  sun  like  mirrors.  These,  he 
said,  were  once  the  harbors  of  Carthage:  a  commercial  har- 
bor, and  the  military  one.  The  ancient  harbors  were  filled 
up  very  early  in  the  seventh  century,  but  some  years  ago 
these  two  lakes  had  been  excavated  to  represent  them  on  a 
small  scale. 

**  I  was  reading  about  these  harbors  of  ancient  Carthage,'' 
said  the  Commander,  "  and  I  believe  the  southern  one  must 
have  been  the  commercial  port.  It  communicated  with  the 
sea  by  a  channel.  Then  there  was  one  seventy  yards  wide  and 
sixty  long,  connected  with  the  military  harbor,  which  was 
circular  and  surrounded  by  large  quays.  Along  these  quays, 
there  were  many  places  divided  oif  for  sheltering  the  ships. 
All  around  there  were  colonnades  of  Ionic  marble.  The 
palace  of  the  admiral  was  on  an  island  in  the  centre  of  the 
harbor.  These  diminutive  lakes  give  us  no  idea  at  all  of  what 
these  harbors  were  once.  They  indicate  only  the  shape  and 
position. ' ' 

* '  Alas,  alas !  ' '  exclaimed  the  Other-one,  * '  to  think  there 
is  scarcely  a  vestige  left  of  that  once  magnificent  city.  There 
is  nothing  of  the  ruins  even  to  be  seen  from  here !  Is  there 
really  anything  to  visit,  in  spite  of  the  excavations,  except 
what  is  in  the  museum,  Bashir  ?  ' ' 

* '  Wait ! ' '  returned  the  guide.  ' '  You  will  find  much  you 
will  be  glad  to  see.  But  I  have  people  —  not  like  you  —  who 
come  here  with  me,  who  look  about  and  say  it  is  not  worth 
their  while  to  walk  around  here.  They  just  glance  into  the 
museum,  get  their  luncheon,  of  which  they  complain  very 

[  358  ] 


TO   CARTHAGE 

much,  then  want  to  go  right  back  to  Tunis,  and  they  say  there 
is  absolutely  nothing  to  see  in  Carthage.  But  you,  you  two, 
are  different." 

The  Two  were  much  flattered,  and  felt  themselves  equal 
to  any  amount  of  visiting  of  ruins  to  come  up  to  Bashir^s 
idea  of  them  and  to  merit  his  approval ! 

They  first  went  to  the  amphitheatre.  This  was  about  a 
kilometre  from  the  hill  of  St.  Louis,  and  they  got  out  of 
the  car  to  walk  down  a  steep  path  into  the  elliptical  confines 
of  this  historic  spot,  full  of  fragments  of  capitals  and  col- 
umns and  great  blocks  of  stone;  for  although  almost  as  big 
as  the  Colosseum  at  Rome,  it  is  in  a  worse  state  of  preserva- 
tion; however,  the  form  and  size  are  shown,  and  the  subter- 
ranean vaults  where  the  wild  beasts  were  kept.  Ancient 
writers  say  it  was  once  the  most  beautiful  building  in  the 
world.  A  little  chapel  has  been  built  at  the  far  end,  and  a 
cross  raised  in  memory  of  the  martyrs  who  perished  here 
during  the  persecutions  of  the  Christians. 

**  On  the  spot  where  the  column  stands  with  the  cross," 
said  Bashir,  as  they  walked  down  the  length  of  the  ellipse, 
**  is  where  St.  Perpetua  and  St.  Felicitas  were  exposed  to 
wild  beasts." 

**  Sit  down  here,  and  I  will  tell  you  their  story  as  briefly 
as  I  can  from  what  I  read  last  night.  It  makes  one's  heart 
ache,  for  here  on  the  spot  it  seems  more  real,"  said  the  Other- 
one  to  the  Commander,  as  they  reached  the  place  in  the 
arena.  **  And  please,  Bashir,  go  gather  me  a  bouquet  of  the 
flowers  and  grasses  that  are  waving  from  the  courses  of 
the  stone  above." 

The  Commander  sat  down  on  a  block  of  stone,  and  the 
Lady,  walking  to  and  fro,  told  something  of  what  she  had 
read  from  Allan  Butler's  pathetic  account: 

**  Saint  Perpetua  was  a  beautiful  young  mother,  leaving  an  infant, 
when  she  suffered  martyrdom  here.  Her  father  was  a  pagan,  but  he 
adored  her,  and  when  she  was  imprisoned  on  account  of  her  belief  and  the 
ordered  persecutions,  he  was  in  an  agony  of  rage  and  grief.  He  begged 
her  to  recant  everything,  for  his  sake,  for  that  of  the  child;  but  she 
would  not,  though  she  suffered  for  the  babe  and  for  her  father.   She  had 

[359] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

a  vision  while  in  prison,  that  she  was  to  be  a  martyr;  at  this  she  re- 
joiced that  she  was  considered  worthy  to  suffer  as  her  Lord  had  suffered. 
Her  father  came  again  to  the  prison,  threw  himself  at  her  feet  and 
wept  the  bitterest  tears,  and  begged  again  that  she  would  have  pity  on 
him  and  on  her  child.  She  entreated  him  not  to  grieve,  saying,  *  Noth- 
ing will  happen  but  what  pleases  God;  for  we  are  not  at  our  own  dis- 
posal! '  She  had  with  her,  in  prison,  a  fellow-martyr,  Felieitas,  who 
was  expecting  soon  to  be  delivered  of  a  child,  but  who  was  so  concerned 
that  this  might  not  be  born  before  the  day  set  for  the  great  shows  in  this 
amphitheatre,  where  many  Christians  were  to  suffer  death  on  that  occa- 
sion. It  was  a  decree  that  women  in  this  condition  were  not  allowed  to 
be  executed  until  after  the  child  was  born,  and  Felieitas  longed  for  the 
crown  of  martyrdom.  The  child  was  born,  however,  a  short  time  before! 
and  when  Felieitas  cried  out  in  the  pain  of  childbirth,  some  soldiers 
near,  asked  her  if  she  could  not  bear  this  pain,  what  would  she  do  when 
exposed  to  the  wild  beasts?  She  made  this  reply,  *It  is  I  that  suffer 
now  what  I  suffer;  but  then  there  will  be  Another  with  me  that  will 
suffer  for  me,  because  I  shall  suffer  for  Him!  * 

'*  When  the  day  arrived,  they  both,  with  other  Christians,  went  away 
from  the  prison  with  great  joy.  "When  they  came  to  this  amphitheatre, 
the  guards  wished  to  put  on  the  Christians,  about  to  suffer,  the  gar- 
ments used  by  the  priests  and  priestesses  which  were  once  worn  when 
human  sacrifices  were  offered  to  the  god  of  War,  Baal  —  Moloch  —  a  relic 
of  Phoenician  days;  the  men  in  scarlet  robes,  the  women  to  wear 
yellow  like  the  priestesses  of  Ceres.  The  martyrs  refused  to  do  this, 
saying  they  had  come  hither  of  their  own  accord,  and  they  had  been 
promised  they  should  not  be  forced  to  do  anything  contrary  to  their 
own  religion;  so  this  was  granted  them.  Perpetua  and  Felieitas  were 
exposed  to  a  wild  cow,  which  had  been  kept  fasting  purposely  to  en- 
rage it  the  more.  This  beast  attacked  Perpetua  first  and  tossed  her  up, 
wounding  her  and  tearing  her  clothes.  She  got  up  and  arranged  them 
as  well  as  she  could  for  decency's  sake,  then  she  went  to  help  Felieitas 
who  was  hurt  very  badly  by  a  toss  from  the  cow.  The  spectators  had 
some  compassion  on  them  and  cried  out  that  this  was  enough,  so  the 
martyrs  were  taken  out  near  the  gate  to  be  despatched,  as  were  those 
not  killed  by  the  wild  beasts.  Perpetua  was  full  of  divine  joy,  and 
seemed  not  to  know  that  she  had  been  thrown  by  the  wild  cow.  Certainly 
it  is  wonderful  to  read  what  those  early  Christians  endured  for  their 
faith,  and  with  such  rejoicing.  All  the  martyrs  then  who  had  escaped 
the  beasts  were  brought  together  to  be  butchered  this  day.  The  people 
around  were  not  satisfied  with  the  blood  already  spilt,  so  they  called  for 
all  to  be  brought  into  the  middle  of  this  arena,  and  they  were  despatched 
here.  Saint  Perpetua  was  unfortunate  enough  to  fall  into  the  hands  of 
a  timid  and  unskilled  gladiator,  who  wounded  her  several  times,  so  she 
was  a  long  time  dying,  but  kept  her  happy  face  to  the  last. ' ' 

**  Is  it  not  all  terribly  pathetic,  and  does  it  not  seem  real, 
right  here  on  the  spot?     But  here  comes  Bashir  with  his 


[360] 


TO   CARTHAGE 

hands  full  of  golden  marigolds  and  red  poppies  —  they  are 
the  blood  of  the  martyrs,  preserved  in  these  poppies,  and  the 
gold  of  their  faith  in  the  marigolds." 

They  went  next  to  see  the  great  cisterns  at  the  village  of 
La  Malga.  As  they  descended  from  the  car  four  or  five 
ragged  and  half-naked  Bedouin  children  climbed  the  bank, 
followed  by  a  wrinkled  old  woman  who  came  up  with  dif- 
ficulty. All  held  out  their  hands,  whining  for  sous.  They 
came  from  the  cisterns,  which  the  Bedouins  use  for  houses 
or  places  of  shelter.  These  cisterns  are  very  curious;  there 
are  twenty-four  in  a  row,  but  utterly  ruined  as  far  as  use 
for  water  is  concerned,  and  the  tops  are  overgrown  with 
weeds  and  grasses.  They  were  at  least  420  feet  long  and  85 
feet  wide,  as  the  Commander  estimated.  There  were  once 
cupolas  in  the  top,  and  pipes  between  for  distributing  the 
water.  It  is  thought  that  in  Punic  times  they  were  built 
and  used  for  collecting  rain  water,  but  when  the  Romans 
came  they  reconstructed  them  and  built  the  aqueduct  to 
Zaghouan  for  bringing  water  to  Carthage.  The  ruins  of  it 
can  be  seen  from  the  hill. 

As  they  went  on  their  way  toward  Damous-el-Karita,  the 
great  basilica  excavated  not  long  ago,  and  which  is  not  vis- 
ited by  all  who  come  to  Carthage,  as  the  road  is  bad,  Bashir 
pointed  out  a,  white  cross  erected  on  a  hill  where  St.  Cyprian 
—  who  suffered  martyrdom  in  the  amphitheatre  —  is  sup- 
posed to  have  been  buried. 

They  stopped  first  near  the  place  where  was  once  a  theatre 
constructed  by  the  Romans,  but  there  is  little  if  anything 
left.  Bashir  said  that  many  statues  had  been  found  here, 
among  others,  a  colossal  statue  of  Apollo.  One  can,  from 
here,  look  down  on  the  terrace  where  was  the  odeon,  where 
the  Pythian  games  were  held.  This  also  was  built  by  the 
Romans.  The  Two  found  these  ruins  more  interesting,  and 
went  down  a  path  near  the  amphitheatre,  where  were  the  rows 
of  seats,  a  few  in  place  at  the  lower  ranks,  several  columns, 
some  of  colored  marble,  and  many  other  fragments. 

**  It  must  have  been  wonderfully  beautiful  and  much  dec- 

[361] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

orated, '^  said  the  Commander.  ''  Look  at  the  numberless 
capitals  at  the  foot  of  the  stage,  and  parts  of  statues  every- 
where. There  must  have  been  found  many  good  statues  as 
well  as  statuettes  here.^' 

*'  Yes,"  returned  Bashir,  *'  I  believe  some  were  found, 
but  many  had  been  destroyed.  They  had  here,  on  two  succes- 
sive years,  some  companies  who  came  down  from  Paris  and 
gave  on  this  stage  plays  that  illustrated  Carthaginian  and 
Koman  times.  There  were  crowds  of  people  here  to  witness 
them,  and  once  Clara  Louise  Kellogg,  the  prima  donna,  sang 
here,  at  the  request  of  a  friend  w^ho  told  her  that  having 
sung  in  all  the  great  theatres  of  the  world  she  must  now  sing 
in  this  Roman  one." 

The  Other-one  had  seated  herself  on  one  of  the  restored 
seats,  and,  according  to  her  custom,  went  back  into  the  past, 
trying  to  call  up  in  her  imagination  scenes  such  as  might 
have  taken  place  here  in  centuries  gone  by.  She  was  a  little 
startled  and  recalled  to  herself,  to  see  a  figure  in  classic  drap- 
eries come  from  behind  some  columns  at  the  back  of  the 
stage,  advance  to  the  front  of  it,  and  looking  at  the  almost 
empty  auditorium,  open  its  lips  as  if  to  declaim.  ''  Look, 
look!  "  cried  the  Lady.  "  There  is  an  actor  from  the  past. 
It  is  a  woman,  now  I  see ;  she  will  recite  to  us,  if  we  but  lis- 
ten, all  about  the  past,  about  all  that  took  place  here."  The 
figure  dropped  lightly  down  by  one  of  the  capitals  lying  there, 
and  advanced  toward  the  Lady,  holding  out  her  hand.  It 
was  a  young  Bedouin  w^oman,  with  bright  dark  eyes  and  skin 
of  a  dark  rich  bronze.  Her  blue  draperies  were  caught  up 
classically  on  her  shoulders,  with  great  fibulae,  and  a  scarlet 
cloth  was  around  her  head.  There  were  silver  hoops  in  her 
ears,  and,  peering  from  over  her  shoulder,  a  little  brown  baby 
regarded  the  party  with  no  look  of  alarm  in  his  beady 
eyes,  which  seemed  to  snap  with  joy  as  the  Commander 
dropped  some  coppers  into  the  mother's  hand. 

' '  What  a  strange  contrast,  these  pulsating  young  lives,  thf 
radiant  sky  above,  the  color  in  the  flowers  blooming  every 


362 


TO   CARTHAGE 

where,  and  this  dignified,  silent  place,  with  the  bones  of 
the  past  protruding  every;where!  "  said  the  Lady  as  they 
walked  away. 

They;  stopped  a  few  moments  to  look  at  some  Punic  tombs, 
near  here,  recently  excavated.  '*  They  found  here,'*  said 
Bashir,  **  many  Punic  lamps,  figures,  coins,  tear-bottles,  and 
pottery  which  they  think  all  belong  to  the  last  years  of  Punic 
Carthage.'' 

They  took  the  car  again  and  went  on  until  they  reached  a 
field  of  grain  in  which  gay  poppies  were  running  riot,  and 
on  the  edges  of  the  road  and  grain  fields  were  masses  of 
marigolds  which  seemed  to  have  borrowed  their  color  from 
the  sun  itself.  A  path  led  up  through  the  green,  waving 
grain  which  they  followed  and  ascended  a  hill  overlooking  the 
blue  gulf,  with  Bou-Kornein  showing  his  two  misty  heads  on 
the  right.  Here  they  found  the  remains  of  some  Roman 
villas,  columns,  mosaics,  and  the  open  court,  with  the  place 
for  a  fountain  in  the  middle. 

**  There  were  statues  and  mosaics  here,  finer  than  those 
in  place,"  said  Bashir,  **  but  all  have  been  taken  to  the 
museum." 

**  What  a  superb  view  these  old  Roman  inmates  of  this 
house  had!  There  is  no  view  I  have  ever  seen  more  peace- 
fully beautiful!  **  exclaimed  the  Other-one. 

Near  one  of  the  Roman  houses  a  small  Christian  basilica 
has  been  uncovered.  It  had  fine  aisles,  an  oratory,  and  a 
baptismal  font  lined  with  marble.  There  are  some  beautiful 
mosaic  floors  here,  but  nothing  at  all  is  known  of  the  church. 

**  The  Abbe  Delattre,  of  the  White  Fathers,  has  super- 
intended most  of  the  excavations,'*  said  Bashir,  as  they 
went  along.  **  This  is  the  story  of  how  the  Great  Basilica 
was  discovered.  One  day  the  Father  was  on  his  way  to  visit 
a  sick  friend  at  Sidi-bou-Said.  When  he  arrived  in  the  dis- 
trict of  Damous-el-Karita,  outside  the  ramparts,  he  noticed 
some  fragments  of  inscriptions  lying  around.  He  then 
engaged  some  Arab  boys  to  bring  in  a  large  number  of  these 


363] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

and  found  they  were  Christian  inscriptions.  He  at  once 
raised  money  and  began  to  excavate  and  found  a  large 
Christian  basilica  and  some  fourteen  thousand  inscriptions. ' ' 

When  our  party  arrived  at  the  basilica,  they  found  an 
immense  surface  covered  with  ruins  in  every  direction.  It 
seemed  impossible  to  identify  anything.  However,  with  what 
Bashir  could  tell  them,  and  with  some  aid  from  what  they 
had  read,  they  cleared  up  a  little  of  the  puzzle  of  these  ruins, 
of  which  one  writer  says,  **  One  can  imagine  the  cathedral 
at  Cordova  or  the  Grand  Mosque  at  Kairouan  making  such 
a  ruin  after  their  beaten-down  fragments  had  been  toned 
with  African  suns  and  storms  of  sand  for  fifteen  sleeping 
centuries. '  ^ 

This  basilica  was  in  the  middle  of  a  vast  Christian  ceme- 
tery. They  found  it  was  divided  into  three  distinct  parts  — 
to  the  left,  the  semi-circular  atrium ;  in  the  middle,  the  basilica 
itself;  and  to  the  right,  a  second  basilica  with  a  baptistery. 
The  basilica  was  220  feet  long  and  140  feet  wide.  It  was 
divided  into  nine  naves,  200  feet  long,  separated  from  each 
other  by  columns  of  green  African  marble,  with  capitals 
and  bases  of  white  marble;  some  of  these  capitals  have 
been  found.  The  central  nave  was  43  feet  wide.  The  smaller 
basilica  was  said  to  have  been  used  principally  for  adminis- 
tering the  sacrament  of  baptism;  in  the  centre  is  the  font, 
with  steps  leading  down  —  the  interior  lined  with  green 
marble. 

Innumerable  persons  were  buried  both  inside  and  out  of 
this  great  church.  Its  entire  pavement  was  a  mass  of  epi- 
taphs, and  some  skeletons  were  found  in  the  tombs.  Two 
hundred  bas-reliefs  were  taken  from  here  to  the  museum. 

When  the  Two  had  studied  out  the  atrium,  the  naves  of 
the  basilica,  and  the  baptismal  font,  they  went  to  look  below 
the  surface  on  one  side,  where  rows  of  tombs  are  exposed 
from  recent  excavations,  the  earth  being  piled  around  outside. 

**  It  is  strange,'*  exclaimed  the  Commander,  **  that  in  spite 
of  all  the  excavation  and  the  inscriptions  found,  there  is 


364] 


TO  CARTHAGE 

practically  little  or  nothing  known  of  this  church.  But  what 
does  Damous-el-Karita  mean,  Bashir? '' 

**  It  is  not  known  certainly,  but  one  of  the  Fathers  told 
me  it  might  be  a  change  from  the  words  domus  caritatis,  or 
house  of  charity.  Somewhat  north  of  here,  near  Dar-bou- 
Kris,  Father  Delattre  discovered  some  few  remains  of  another 
basilica,  amid  a  very  large  Christian  cemetery.  They  found 
an  inscription  there  in  honor  of  Saint  Perpetua,  so  they 
think  she  and  her  companions  were  buried  there.  Now  we 
go  from  here  to  the  restored  cisterns  down  near  the  sea ;  they 
are  thought  to  be  the  most  important  monuments  of  Carthage, 
but  they  are  not  as  large  as  those  of  La  Malga.  They  call 
these  we  are  to  see,  from  an  old  Turkish  fort  down  there, 
Bordj  Djedid.'* 

When  they  reached  the  cisterns  they  were  taken  in  charge 
by  the  foreman  or  guardian  there.  He  proved  to  be  an 
extremely  intelligent  man,  and,  in  answer  to  questions  put 
by  the  intensely  interested  Commander,  gave  them  much 
information  while  he  led  them  through  one  of  the  compart- 
ments. They  descended  some  steps  and  walked  along  a  stone 
or  cement  platform,  looking  down  into  the  still  black  water 
on  each  side,  lighted  only  by  openings  here  and  there  in  the 
roof..  It  was  a  gruesome  place,  and  one  could  imagine  how 
easy  it  would  be  to  commit  suicide  here. 

**  These  cisterns  are  divided  into  eighteen  compartments 
and  stand  in  a  single  line.  They  are  448  feet  long  and  121 
feet  wide.  They  will  contain  about  one  million  cubic  feet 
of  water.  Before  being  restored,  they  were  carefully  cleaned 
of  all  rubbish  and  the  vaults  and  walls  were  covered  with 
cement.  They  now  hold  the  water  necessary  for  the  towns 
of  Carthage,  La  Goletta,  and  other  near-by  towns,'*  said  the 
guardian.  **  At  the  time  of  the  Romans  there  were  enor- 
mous baths  near  here.  These  reservoirs  contained  the  water 
necessary  for  use  in  them,  but  the  opinion  is  that  they  really 
date  from  Punic  times.  These  are  the  type  of  all  those  found 
in  Northern  Africa.    Early  Carthage  had  very  little  natural 

[365] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

water  and  they  had  to  dig  forty  or  fifty  feet  below  the  sur- 
face of  the  land  for  it,  so  they  constructed  wells  and  cisterns 
to  hold  rain  water  for  public  as  well  as  private  use.  They 
had  to  build  such  enormous  ones  as  these,  because  a  smaller 
quantity  of  water  would  soon  dry  up  or  be  drawn  off. 

'*  The  Romans,  when  they  needed  a  greater  supply  of 
water  for  fountains  and  baths,  found  it  in  the  wonderful 
springs  of  Zaghouan,  which  were  even  more  abundant  then 
than  now.  So  they  built  the  great  aqueduct  at  a  time  when 
there  was  a  serious  drought  threatening  the  country.  This 
great  work  delivered  some  six  million  gallons  of  water  a  day 
by  means  of  underground  canals  and  thousands  of  overhead 
arches,  some  of  which  you  can  see  to-day.  The  Vandals 
destroyed  this  aqueduct ;  then  the  Byzantines  restored  it ;  but 
at  last  the  Spaniards  demolished  it  almost  entirely.  The  cis- 
terns at  La  Malga  were  connected  with  these,  and  thus  they 
had,  at  each  end  of  the  city,  immense  reservoirs  of  water. 

**  About  1859,  the  then  reigning  bey  decided  to  restore  the 
aqueduct  to  give  to  Tunis,  as  well  as  Carthage  and  the 
suburbs,  pure  water.  A  big  sum  was  set  aside  for  this  and 
the  work  was  begun  under  a  French  engineer.  Monsieur 
Colin.  He  followed  the  Roman  route,  used  iron  pipes  instead 
of  arches,  and  the  old  masonry  channels  whenever  prac- 
ticable. He  finished  it  in  three  years,  using  134,400  feet  of 
pipe,  forty  bridges,  seventy-nine  culverts,  and  a  hundred 
underground  channels.  The  chateau  d  'eau  (reservoir)  is 
at  Tunis  —  you  may  have  seen  it  —  and  a  branch  aqueduct 
comes  here.    It  cost,  in  all,  many  millions  of  francs. ' ' 

As  they  walked  up  the  white  road  to  the  car,  brushing  the 
waving  grain  as  they  passed  along  the  edge  of  the  fields,  the 
Other-one  exclaimed  at  the  brilliant  color  everywhere. 

' '  Who  could  call  this  a  dead  city !  Look  at  the  luxuriant 
blossoms  of  the  scarlet  poppies  and  the  golden  glow  of  the 
marigolds  everywhere,  the  deep  blue  of  the  sky,  the  peacock 
blue  of  the  sea,  and  the  rose  mauve  of  the  distant  mountains ! 
All  seem  richer  and  livelier  since  we  came  out  of  those  black 
cisterns.     It  could  never  have  been  so  beautiful  in  Cartha- 

[  366  ] 


TO  CARTHAGE 

ginian  or  Roman  times,  for  though  they  had  the  sea  and 
mountains,  there  was  then  no  place  for  this  glorious  bloom." 

Arriving  at  the  Punic  cemetery,  called  that  of  Douimes  or 
Dermeche,  they  found  great,  deep  holes  and  long  galleries 
dug  into  the  earth,  which  are  thought  to  date  from  the  sixth 
or  seventh  century  before  the  Christian  era.  The  tombs  con- 
tained in  these  are  very  curious,  each  being  constructed  of 
three  great  slabs  of  stone  without  cement  or  mortar;  above 
each  a  large  slab  of  stone  is  inclined  upon  the  other  two,  so  as 
to  form  a  triangle  and  it  is  thought  they  were  so  arranged 
to  protect  the  body  from  the  dust  of  the  earth,  or  from  the 
wet  or  damp.  Sometimes  the  excavators  found  the  body  had 
been  placed  directly  on  the  earth;  sometimes  shut  up  in  a 
sort  of  coffin  of  cedar  wood.  When  the  tombs  were  opened 
many  skeletons  were  found  but  upon  any  attempt  to  move 
them  they  fell  into  ashes.  Some  few  remained  intact,  how- 
ever, and  these  may  be  seen  in  glass  cases  in  the  museum. 
Father  Delattre  also  found  here  many  other  objects  —  very 
few  weapons  of  war,  for  the  ancient  Carthaginians  were  not 
fighting  men,  but  jewellery:  necklaces,  bracelets,  rings,  mir- 
rors, statuettes,  curious  lamps,  and  other  things. 

**  These  tombs  are  the  most  interesting  things  we  have  yet 
seen,'*  said  the  Commander.  **  They  take  us  back  to  the 
times  of  Phoenician  Carthage.  By  the  way,  do  you  remember 
the  tombs  like  these  which  we  saw  at  Hippone?  " 

Bashir,  now  considering  that  his  patrons,  though  enthusi- 
astic sight-seers,  might  require  a  little  refreshment  after  the 
long  morning,  considerately  allowed  them  to  go  to  luncheon 
at  the  little  hotel  on  the  terrace,  where,  if  the  menu  offered 
them  was  not  all  that  could  be  desired  in  point  of  flavor  and 
cleanness,  the  view  from  the  window  near  which  their  little 
table  was  placed  would  have  compensated  for  no  matter  what 
other  lack. 

After  this,  they  went  out  to  the  gate  in  the  high  wall  sur- 
rounding the  garden  of  the  White  Fathers.  Here,  amid  the 
bloom  of  rose-bushes,  fleurs-de-lis,  wallflowers,  and  many 
others,  with  graceful  pepper-trees,  palms,  cypress  and  acacia 

[  367  ] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

trees  casting  soft  shadows  over  them,  are  crowded  a  mass  of 
the  ruins  of  ancient  Carthage, —  statues  more  or  less  muti- 
lated, columns,  capitals,  bits  of  friezes,  piles  of  the  round 
stones  used  in  ancient  catapults,  torsos,  amphorae,  sarcophagi, 
and  a  thousand  other  antique  fragments,  while  the  walls  are 
plastered  inside  with  hundreds  of  Christian  and  Roman 
inscriptions.  The  lush  bloom  of  the  plants  takes  all  the  mel- 
ancholy out  of  these  mutilated  fragments,  and  for  the 
archaeologist  as  well  as  for  the  layman,  it  is  a  most  fascinat- 
ing place,  where  one  would  fain  linger  before  going  into  the 
dark  rooms  of  the  museum. 

The  Other-one  would  not  allow  herself  this  indulgence, 
however,  well  knowing  what  infinitely  more  fascinating  things 
lay  beyond  in  the  College  Museum,  and  how  little  time  there 
was  to  see  all  she  wished.  So  they  hurried  by  the  graceful, 
headless  statue  with  its  flying  draperies  so  well  chiselled, 
said  to  be  the  goddess  Celeste;  and  by  the  series  of  eight 
great  arches  thought  by  some  archaeologists  to  have  belonged 
to  the  palace  of  a  Roman  proconsul.  But  at  the  insistence 
of  the  Other-one  the  Commander  went  with  her  up  the  steps 
of  the  chapel  on  a  high  mound  in  the  centre  of  the  garden, 
dedicated  to  Saint  Louis,  who  camped  here  at  Carthage  dur- 
ing the  crusade  against  Tunis,  and  died  here  of  the  plague. 
An  indifferent  statue  to  the  saint  surmounts  the  little  altar, 
but  the  party  did  no  more  than  glance  inside  of  the  bare  little 
place,  though  they  lingered,  as  they  stepped  out,  for  the 
glorious  view  from  the  top  of  the  steps,  and  this  is  what  they 
saw:  — 

At  the  right,  far  below,  lay  the  little  ponds  of  the  cothon, 
or  double  port  of  ancient  Carthage,  gleaming  like  burnished 
silver  in  the  sun.  Down  in  front,  across  the  sweep  of  green 
fields  dotted  with  white  villas  and  the  ancient  palace  of  Mus- 
tapha-ben-Ismail  on  the  shore,  the  eye  took  in  the  shimmer- 
ing glory  of  the  blue  gulf.  At  the  north,  Cape  Carthage 
jutted  out,  and  the  ivory  white  village  of  Sidi-bou-Said 
clung  to  its  emerald  hill.  At  the  left,  the  soft,  rolling  heights 
of  the  Hill  of  Juno  and  the  terrace  of  the  odeon.     At  the 

[368] 


TO   CARTHAGE 

right,  again,  the  mysterious,  and  seemingly  all-knowing  (of 
the  Past),  misty,  double  head  of  Bou-Korein,  behind  which 
the  Djebel  Ressas  peered  up,  and  away  beyond,  blurred  in  the 
blue  distance,  the  jagged  points  of  great  Zaghouan,  which  so 
long  ago  gave,  and  still  gives,  of  its  abundant  crystal  waters 
to  Carthage.  Still  farther  to  the  right,  the  yellow  lake,  La 
Goletta,  the  long  line  of  the  canal,  and  at  the  far  extrem- 
ity, white  Tunis. 

*  *  And  this  hill  was  the  Byrsa  of  Queen  Dido  —  for  I  like 
to  think  this  was  her  city,"  said  the  Other-one.  *'  Here 
was  the  citadel  of  ancient  Carthage  and  here  stood  the  won- 
derful Temple  of  the  god  Echmoun;  and  when  the  Romans 
came  they  built  other  beautiful  temples  and  paved  the  hill 
with  marble.  In  those  last  dreadful  days  of  the  Punic  wars 
the  Romans  fought  their  way  up  here,  step  by  step,  from 
the  harbor,  through  streets  with  high  houses  jutting  over 
on  each  side,  the  roofs  of  which  were  packed  with  the  des- 
perate Carthaginians  who  at  last  rushed  to  the  temple  in 
the  greatest  agony,  all  but  Hasdrubal  who  went  off  secretly  to 
Scipio,  threw  himself  at  his  feet  and  offered  to  deliver  up 
all  left  of  Carthage.  When  Scipio  made  this  known  to  those 
in  the  temple,  Hasdrubal's  wife,  agonized  at  his  terrible  dis- 
honor, declared  that  she  did  not  blame  Scipio,  as  he  acted 
but  by  the  rights  of  war;  but  she  screamed  the  most  scorch- 
ing revilings  at  her  husband,  and  then  threw  herself  with 
her  children  into  the  flames  below.  It  is  not  strange  that 
when  Scipio  saw  all  this  and  the  burning  of  the  once  proud 
and  magnificent  city,  he  wept.  Now  look  around  on  this 
peaceful,  sunny  land  and  sea  view;  who  could  possibly 
imagine  that  such  a  scene  could  have  ever  taken  place  here  ?  '  * 

At  the  back  of  the  platform  of  the  chapel,  they  noticed  a 
number  of  small  Punic  marble  ossuaries  containing  charred 
bones,  which  Bashir  told  them  had  been  found  in  the  Punic 
cemeteries  near  the  queer  tombs,  and  which  some  of  the  exca- 
vators thought  were  the  ashes  of  the  children  burned  there, 
whose  relatives  had  been  allowed  to  gather  these  ashes  up 
and  place  them  in  the  cemeteries  in  the  ossuaries. 

[369] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

*'  I  have  read  about  the  horrible  human  sacrifices  to  Moloch. 
They  dropped  children  and  youths  into  the  awful,  red-hot 
arms  of  the  brazen  image  from  which  they  rolled  down  into 
a  flaming  furnace.  It  makes  me  shiver  to  look  at  those  small, 
discolored,  marble  boxes.  One  cannot  forgive  the  early 
Carthaginians  for  that  horrible  custom,"  said  the  Other-one. 

They  now  went  through  the  flowering  garden  to  the  colon- 
nade of  the  College.  Here  are,  among  other  things,  two  won- 
derful reliefs  of  a  colossal  Victory  and  Abundance,  found  in 
Carthage.  The  strong,  beautiful  Victory  bears  a  shield  and 
armor  aloft  with  the  left  hand,  while  her  drapery  falls  in 
graceful  folds  around  her.  The  lovely  Abundance,  or  Char- 
ity, has  a  cornucopia  filled  to  overflowing  with  fruits,  a  great 
bunch  of  grapes  dropping  down  from  it.  The  Two  stopped 
to  admire  these  and  then  went  into  the  vestibule  of  the 
Seminaire,  where  a  Father,  in  the  white  robes  and  red  fez 
of  his  order,  met  them,  and,  seeing  they  were  strangers  and 
full  of  enthusiasm,  took  them  at  once  under  his  charge. 

*  *  You  will  wish  to  go  first  into  the  Punic  room,  which  is 
of  the  greatest  interest,"  said  the  pere,  leading  the  way. 
**  Here  are  the  objects  found  in  the  Punic  tombs  excavated 
on  the  north  side  of  this  hill  of  Saint  Louis,  those  near 
Damous-el-Karita,  and  at  Douimes.  The  oldest  yet  found  are 
about  the  seventh  century  B.  C,  and  the  latest  the  second 
century  B.  C.  They  all  show  an  influence  really  Oriental 
in  origin,  derived  without  doubt  from  Egypt,  but  gradually 
penetrated  by  Hellenic  elements  coming  principally  from 
Sicily,  where  the  Carthaginians  came  much  into  contact  with 
the  Greeks.  The  most  remarkable  things  are  the  sarcophagi 
taken  out  of  Punic  tombs  in  the  cemetery  near  Damous-el- 
Karita,  and  the  most  beautiful  of  these  I  will  show  you  at 
once." 

He  crossed  the  room,  passing  cabinets  and  long  cases  full 
of  objects,  and  stopped  near  the  end  of  the  room  with  a  face 
alight  with  enthusiasm,  pointing  to  the  upright  cover  of  a 
sarcophagus,  carved  on  which  the  lovely  face  of  a  young 
woman  looked  out  at  them  from  the  far  past,  a  face  neither 

[370] 


'.%^''.  ^ir  > 


a 


THE  CISTERNS  AT  LA  MALGA  —  NEAE  CARTHAGE 


SUBTERRANEAN   VILLA  AT  BULLA   REGIA:   RUINS  OF 
ROMAN  TIMES 


TO  CARTHAGE 

Greek  nor  yet  Egyptian  in  its  outlines,  but  of  an  entirely  dif- 
ferent type;  softer,  gentler,  finer,  and  of  a  grave  sweetness; 
the  type,  perhaps,  of  those  unknown  Punic  women.  She  held 
a  dove  in  her  right  hand,  the  emblem  of  a  priestess,  and  a 
sacrificial  vase  in  the  left.  She  was  clothed  in  a  long,  folded 
tunic ;  and  two  great  wings,  with  the  small  feathers  indicated 
by  red  marks,  and  the  large  plumes  by  gold  lines  on  a  blue 
ground,  were  folded  down  across  her  knees  to  her  feet.  On 
her  head  she  had  a  sort  of  Egyptian  head-dress,  the  front  a 
hawk's  head  with  painted  eyes. 

*  *  It  is  divine !  * '  exclaimed  the  Other-one.  *  *  It  must  show 
all  that  was  of  the  loveliest  in  the  women  of  those  Punic 
times,  of  whom  this  priestess  was  the  fairest  flower.** 

**  Here  is  the  priest,  her  husband,'*  said  the  pere,  **  for 
so  we  think  they  were,  as  they  were  found  together  —  priest 
and  priestess  of  Tamit." 

It  was  a  noble,  manly  figure  with  a  most  benevolent  expres- 
sion, but  not  such  a  type  of  manly  beauty,  as  the  priestess 
of  womanly.  He  wore  a  long  tunic  and  shoes,  his  beard 
curled  and  his  head  bound  with  a  fillet.  He  bore  a  sacrificial 
box  in  his  right  hand  like  the  priestess.  At  the  foot  of  each 
stood  the  sarcophagus  of  each,  in  which  were  found  only  a 
few  bones. 

**  May  I  have  a  photograph  of  it?  It  will  take  but  a  few 
moments;  I  cannot  go  away  without  carrying  a  view  of  the 
lovely  Priestess  of  Tamit." 

'*  It  is  not  allowed,"  said  the  Father,  '*  but  for  you,  per- 
haps, who  have  so  great  interest,  one  pose." 

So  the  Other-one  set  herself  hastily  to  place  her  kodak, 
but  the  result,  to  her  sorrow,  was  far  from  satisfactory,  partly 
owing  to  the  sombre  light  in  the  room,  and  partly,  perhaps, 
to  the  evident  dissatisfaction  of  the  Pcre  Blanc.  After  show- 
ing this  chef-d^oeuvre  he  seemed  to  feel  the  rest  was  not  of 
so  much  importance,  so  he  led  them  on  rather  rapidly,  point- 
ing out  objects  in  the  long  cases  and  in  the  cabinets  on  the 
walls,  as  they  passed. 

"  The    Carthaginian    always   had   interred   with   him  the 

[371] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

things  he  loved  most,  and  his  sorrowing  friends  placed  with 
him  those  things  which  were  thought  needful  to  him  after 
death  or  in  the  future  world;  so  here  you  see  jewels,  neck- 
laces, bracelets,  rings,  fibulae  —  entirely  Egyptian  in  design 
and  style.  Then  here  are  mirrors  and  curious  lamps,  the 
like  of  which  the  Arabs  use  to-day.  See  those  amulets  in 
vitrified  paste  and  Egyptian  in  style.  Here  are  their  razors, 
shaped  just  like  a  hatchet,  with  different  divinities  engraved 
on  them,  as  well  as  animals.  The  handle  is  in  the  shape  of 
a  flamingo.  It  is  curious,  but  there  were  found  spectacles 
—  for  there  were  two  crystal  disks  flat  on  one  side  and  con- 
cave on  the  other;  and  what  could  they  have  been  used  for 
but  spectacles?  ** 

'*Well!*'  exclaimed  the  Commander,  *' if  the  Carthagin- 
ians shaved  and  used  spectacles,  they  may  have  had  tele- 
phones and  automobiles,  at  least  in  embryo.*' 

The  Father  smiled  when  this  was  repeated  to  him.  **  We 
have  not  discovered  anything  like  those  as  yet,  but  who  knows 
what  will  be  found  in  further  excavations?  We  are  begin- 
ning to  believe  that  in  Punic  and  Roman  times  they  had 
nearly  everything  in  use  at  the  present  day.  You  will  see 
in  the  Roman  room  a  terra-cotta  figure  playing  an  organ, 
showing  the  instrument  in  a  well  advanced  stage,  with  pipes 
of  different  lengths,  a  sounding  board,  and  reservoirs  for  air 
and  water  on  each  side.  Here  are  some  masques  with  fright- 
ful, grinning  faces.  It  is  not  known  for  what  purpose  they 
served  —  perhaps,  to  place  in  tombs  to  frighten  those  who 
wished  to  violate  them.  Here  are  others  which  are  pleasant 
and  smiling.  It  may  be  these  were  intended  to  represent  the 
dead  as  his  double,  as  was  the  Egyptian  custom.'* 

Then  he  showed  them  curious  terra-cotta  lamps  like  a 
saucer  pinched  in  on  two  sides,  and  quaint  figurines,  some 
like  those  of  Tanagra.  One  little  Cupid  with  wings,  lying  fiat 
in  a  sort  of  boat,  his  arm  trailing  over  the  side,  attracted  the 
Other-one  very  much  —  a  fascinating  creature  with  curly 
hair  painted  red,  and  traces  of  color  in  his  body  and  the 
drapery  across  him.    Then  there  were  the  cases  of  shimmer- 

[  372  ] 


TO   CARTHAGE 

ing  glass  —  vases,  jars,  tear-bottles  —  in  the  colors  of  the 
rainbow,  beautiful  to  see.  There  was  an  infinity  of  things 
that  the  Two  would  fain  have  lingered  over,  and  about  which 
they  would  have  questioned  the  White  Father,  but  he  hur- 
ried them  relentlessly  on.  At  the  farther  end  of  the  corridor 
they  came  to  the  Roman  and  Christian  room,  in  which  were 
fragments  of  sculpture,  a  most  interesting  head  of  Ceres,  one 
of  Augustus,  one  of  Octavia  his  sister,  and  one  of  Hercules; 
also  a  statue  of  Esculapius.  A  fine  terra-cotta  relief,  besides 
the  one  of  the  organ,  was  that  of  a  Roman  matron  having 
her  toilet  performed  by  her  slave  while  she  was  reading,  and 
another,  spinning  with  a  distaff.  There  were  many  lamps 
such  as  are  always  found  in  excavating  Roman  houses  and 
tombs ;  some,  of  the  first  period,  very  fine,  and  the  reliefs  on 
them  sometimes  very  spirited.  Those  of  the  second  period 
were  not  so  well  done,  and  the  subjects  from  mythology  were 
rather  coarse.  Then  there  were  all  kinds  of  Roman  vessels, 
from  cinerary  urns  to  amphorae. 

The  Christian  section  was  full  of  pathetic  significance, 
with  its  reliefs  from  scenes  in  the  Bible  and  with  the  Cross, 
the  Lamb,  and  the  Lion,  as  well  as  the  bas-reliefs  from  the 
great  basilica,  one  representing  the  Angel  of  the  Lord 
announcing  the  birth  of  Christ  to  the  shepherds,  and  the 
other  the  Adoration  of  the  Magi.  The  Two  saw  in  all  these 
symbols  of  the  struggle  of  that  early  Church,  which  suffered 
and  endured  martyrdom  for  Christ's  sake.  There  were  also 
hundreds  of  other  Christian  relics  —  crosses,  rings  with 
sacred  words  or  anagrams  on  them,  and  hundreds  of  epitaphs, 
the  names  always  followed  by  the  words  Fidelis  in  Pace. 

The  Pere  Blanc  had  lingered  longer  over  these  Christian 
relics,  showing  them  with  reverent  care  and  tenderness,  but 
at  last  he  said: 

*  *  I  am  sorry  to  leave  you  now,  but  my  duties  call  me  away. 
I  thank  you  for  the  interest  you  have  shown,  especially  in 
these  relics  of  our  beloved  Church.*' 

The  Commander  and  the  Lady  in  turn  acknowledged  to 
him  their  sincere  gratitude,  and  he  scurried  rapidly  off,  his 

[373  1 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

white  burnous  blowing  back  in  his  haste.  The  Two  turned 
also  away  from  this  fascinating  place  and  went  out  into  the 
living  fragrance  and  bloom  of  the  garden,  under  the  blue  sky 
and  warm  sun,  away  from  the  shadowy  land  of  the  dead 
past,  where  they  had  been  wandering  for  an  hour  or  so. 
They  stopped  a  few  moments  to  adjust  themselves  to  this 
modern  world  again,  then  went  on  to  the  gate,  where  they 
found  for  sale  some  genuine  antiquities  —  an  overflow  from 
the  museum.  Here  the  Commander  invested  in  two  or  three 
of  the  queer  Punic  lamps,  an  iridescent  tear-bottle  of  Roman 
times,  some  engraved  finger  rings  from  Christian  tombs,  and 
two  or  three  pair  of  barbaric  earrings.  Then  the  Other-one 
said  they  must  see  the  big  Cathedral  of  Saint  Louis  and  the 
Tomb  of  the  Cardinal. 

Artists  and  antiquarians  do  not  easily  forgive  Cardinal 
Lavigerie  for  having  invaded  the  sacred  precincts  of  the  his- 
toric hill  of  the  Byrsa  and  erected  there  the  rather  garish 
and  conspicuous  white  buildings  of  the  Church  and  the  Sem- 
inary of  the  White  Fathers,  though  one  cannot  but  admire 
the  force  and  strong  religious  fervor  of  the  Cardinal  in  his 
attempts  to  establish  the  Christian  faith  again  in  Africa,  nor 
will  any  one  deny  him  the  tribute  of  pity  that  he  did  not 
succeed  to  the  extent  that  his  ardent  soul  desired.  He  died 
at  Algiers  in  November,  1892.  His  body  was  brought  here 
and  placed  in  the  tomb  which  he  himself  had  selected.  His 
church,  in  the  Byzantine-Mauresque  style,  holds  his  body  and 
monument  as  sacred  possessions.  This  monument  represents 
him,  life  size,  in  a  half  recumbent  position,  with  two  negroes 
below,  one  carrying  a  palm  branch  and  the  other  in  chains. 
On  the  side  opposite,  a  negress  kneels,  holding  a  child  in 
her  arms.  Still  below  these  are  two  of  the  White  Fathers,  in 
the  costume  of  their  order,  kneeling. 

**  It  is  certainly  an  impressive  monument,''  said  the  Com- 
mander, ' '  but  I  like  better  the  position  of  the  figure  in  bronze 
that  we  saw  at  Biskra;  it  is  full  of  force  and  action,  repre- 
senting his  ardent  nature.  Here  he  appears  inactive,  which 
does  not  seem  to  suit  our  idea  of  him.'* 

[374] 


TO   CARTHAGE 

Then  they  went  to  see  the  splendid  reliquary  of  gilded 
bronze,  which  is  most  sacred  and  interesting  to  good  Catholics 
who  come  to  this  church.  It  represents  the  Sainte  Chapelle 
in  Paris  and  contains  some  portions  of  the  remains  of  Saint 
Louis  brought  from  the  Church  of  Monreale  at  Palermo. 

Our  party  were  not  now  in  touch  with  modern  gilding, 
decorations,  and  bronze  monumeijts,  having  been  wandering 
through  the  wonderful  remains  of  a  civilization  spread  over 
three  thousand  years,  so  they  lingered  but  a  few  moments 
in  this  very  modern  church,  and  were  soon  seated  in  their 
motor  and  on  the  way  to  the  little  white  village  of  Sidi-bou 
Said. 

**  I  am  rejoiced  to  have  a  little  time  to  get  back  to  modern 
scenes, ' '  said  the  Other-one,  * '  before  we  come  to  Ariana, 
where  you  say,  Bashir,  that  this  being  Saturday  and  their 
Sabbath,  the  fat  Jewesses  are  promenading,  decked  out  in 
their  best.  It  would  be  appalling,  indeed,  to  jump  directly 
there  from  Punic  times,  and  see  those  gaudy  and  mountainous 
creatures,  after  wandering  in  the  past  ages  with  that 
exquisitely  refined  and  lovely  Priestess  of  Tamit!  ** 

They  came  to  the  foot  of  the  hill  on  which  Sidi-bou-Said 
lies,  and  the  car  went  up  the  steep,  winding  road  to  a  place 
where  they  descended  and  walked  up  the  hill,  still  more  steep. 
It  is  a  quaint,  little  village,  distinctly  Arab,  with  blanched, 
windowless  houses,  flat,  terraced  roofs  and  fine,  arched  door- 
ways. Little  latticed  balconies  projected  on  some  houses,  it 
is  true,  but  all  had  an  air  of  silent  mystery.  There  were 
few  if  any  cafes  and  scarcely  any  shops.  It  appeared  like 
a  magic  city,  only  conjured  for  the  time  by  the  guide,  to  van- 
ish soon  after. 

**Why  is  this  town  so  clean,  so  silent,  so  solitary?  Is 
everybody  dead  or  only  asleep  here  ?  *  *  asked  the  Other-one 
as  they  toiled,  panting,  up  the  steep,  roughly  paved  street, 
toward  the  little  tower  of  the  lighthouse,  showing  its  marble 
whiteness  against  a  vividly  blue  sky. 

**  It  is  quiet  now,  for  the  summer  people  have  not  yet 
arrived.    It  is  a  place  where  very  rich  Arabs  have  their  sum- 

[375] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

mer  homes,  and  now  there  are  only  the  caretakers  here, 
though  there  is  one  fine  cafe  open  to  which  they  go  summer 
evenings  for  their  coffee  and  there  is  a  beautiful  view  of  the 
sea.    I  shall  have  pleasure  to  give  you  some  coffee  later.*' 

After  visiting  the  little  mosque  with  its  black  and  white 
arches,  in  or  near  which  the  Mussulmans  claim  that  the 
body  of  St.  Louis  lies  —  for  they  believe  firmly  that  Saint 
Louis  embraced  the  Mohammedan  faith  before  he  died  —  and 
the  lighthouse  tower  whose  golden  rays  flash  at  night  far 
across  the  gulf  to  the  sea,  Bashir  took  them  into  the  Arab 
cafe,  lovely  with  tiles  and  meshrahyah  woodwork,  long  divans 
and  little  inlaid  tables,  where  as  yet  only  a  few  rich  Arabs 
were  lazily  lounging.  He  had  a  little  table  put  for  them  out 
on  the  terrace  which  overhangs  the  gulf  splashing  its  foam 
on  the  rocks  far  below.  An  Arab  in  a  red  fez  and  a  long 
white  garment  bound  at  his  waist  with  a  broad  red  sash 
brought  them  tiny  cups  of  fragrant,  sweet,  Turkish  coffee. 
Here  they  let  themselves  rest  a  while,  silently,  after  their  day 
of  strenuous  sight-seeing,  looking  down  upon  the  blue  gulf 
and  off  to  the  rich  green  foliage  at  one  side,  through  which 
the  tops  of  white  Arab  villas  showed  and  the  vineyards  of  the 
Archbishop  of  Tunis.  Not  far  off  is  his  great  white  villa  to 
which  he  comes  in  summer,  ' '  to  repose  himself, ' '  Bashir  said. 

The  party  descended  to  the  car,  which  swung  down  to  La 
Marsa,  where  they  saw  the  beylical  guards,  outside  the  en- 
trance gate,  dressed  like  the  French  Zouaves  and  the  Chas- 
seurs d'Afrique.  Here  are  more  summer  villas,  more  or  less 
tasteful,  and  the  big  white  villa  of  the  French  Resident  Gen- 
eral. Passing  through  groves  of  olive-trees,  the  car  reached 
the  poor,  uninteresting  village  of  Ariana.  Here  are,  however, 
gardens  of  roses  behind  high  walls,  which  are  cultivated  for 
the  attar  of  rose  so  much  prized  by  the  Orientals. 

The  party  went  to  view  such  lovely  Jewesses  as  might  be 
visible,  and  truly  it  was  a  most  wonderful  and  stirring  sight 
to  see  them,  both  young  girls  and  married  women,  arrayed  in 
the  most  ungraceful  and  ugly  garments  ever  worn  by  the  fe- 
male sex,  the  former  often  slender  and  beautiful,  the  latter, 

[376] 


m 


^A   -^'^^-  irtwlim 


THK   BEAUTIFUL   PRIESTESS    OF   CAKTllA(iK 
COVER  OF  PUNIC  SARCOPHAGUS,  DATING 
FROM  FOURTH  CENTURY,  B.  C. 
IN  LAVir.KTUE  MUSEUM 


TO   CARTHAGE 

mountains  of  flesh.  Some  were  sitting  at  tables,  eating  and 
drinking  grossly.  Others,  really  the  most  conspicuous,  were 
promenading  up  and  down  the  street  before  the  cafe.  Most 
of  the  costumes  consisted  of  the  immensely  full  balloon  trous- 
ers, such  as  the  Algerian  women  wear,  either  of  satin  or  fine 
white  cloth.  Their  fat  feet  were  half  thrust  into  velvet, 
silk,  or  satin  slippers  or  clogs  of  red,  blue,  or  pink,  em- 
broidered in  gold,  far  beyond  which  their  stout  heels  extended, 
so  that  they  shuffled  along  like  awkward  ducks.  To  complete 
this  costume  they  wore  very  short,  full  jackets  of  pink,  blue, 
yellow,  green,  red,  or  white  satin,  often  heavily  embroidered 
in  gold  and  trimmed  with  gold  lace.  These  jackets,  like 
breakfast  jackets,  coming  just  below  the  waist  line,  exagger- 
ated the  masses  of  flesh.  Many  had  gleaming  necklaces  of 
gold  and  jewels,  bracelets,  rings,  earrings,  wonderful  to  be- 
hold. On  the  head  most  wore  coquettish  little  silk  handker- 
chiefs, spangled  or  fringed  with  silk  or  gold,  and  the  hair 
hung  in  a  braid  below  at  the  back.  They  used  to  wear  the 
horned  cap,  ornamented  richly  with  gold,  and  a  white  veil 
hanging  down  over  it,  but  now  this  is  only  on  some  of  the 
older  women.  Also  they  wore  very  tight  satin  trousers  em- 
broidered heavily  in  gold,  but  these  too  one  sees  very  little 
now,  though  it  is  possible  they  may  wear  them  in  their  own 
homes. 

**  Certainly,*'  said  the  Other-one,  **  the  Queen  of  Sheba 
was  never  arrayed  in  all  the  glory  of  these  Jewesses.  I  must 
kodak  some  of  them !  ' ' 

**  They  do  not  like  it  at  all,  Madame,**  said  Bashir,  **  at 
least  they  pretend  not  to  like  it,  though  they  like  much  to 
have  people  stare  at  their  clothes ;  but  I  will  see  what  can  be 
done.**  But,  although  Bashir  did  his  best,  the  groups  that 
came  along  turned  their  backs  shortly  and  walked  off  when 
they  saw  the  Other-one  point  her  camera  at  them.  By  pre- 
tending to  look  at  other  things,  however,  the  Lady  was  at 
last  successful  and  bore  away  one  or  two  exposed  films  as 
souvenirs. 

Some  of  the  Jews,  especially  the  younger  men,  looked  very 

[377] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

well,  but  were  very  tame  birds  compared  to  the  gorgeous 
plumaged  ones  with  whom  they  were  promenading.  The 
older  men  had  black  suits,  full  trousers,  and  blue  stockings, 
with  huge  black  tassels  depending  from  their  fezes.  The 
younger  men  were  hardly  to  be  distinguished  from  the  Arabs 
in  their  dress,  some  having  richly  embroidered  jackets  under 
their  light  burnouses.  They  seemed  proud  of  their  females 
and  gratified  by  the  attention  they  excited  in  strangers. 

The  party  got  into  the  car  and  fled  over  the  smooth  road  to 
Tunis,  satisfied  and  happy  with  this  as  with  many  another 
day's  experience  in  this  interesting  country. 


[378] 


CHAPTER   XXIII 

A     TRIP     TO     MEDENINE     AND     MATMATA     IN     THE     TROGLODYTE 
COUNTRY,   BY  SOUSSE,  SFAX,  AND  DJEM 

THE  Other-one  was  awakened  at  an  early  hour  the  next 
morning  by  loud  noises  in  the  corridor  outside  her  cham- 
ber,—  much  running  around,  loud  talking,  and  slamming  of 
doors.  The  waiter  on  being  questioned  when  he  brought  up 
the  morning  coffee,  said  that  * '  a  so  rich  *  *  American  family 
had  arrived  in  the  harbor  in  their  private  yacht  at  a  very 
early  hour  that  morning  and  had  sent  their  maids  and  valets 
to  select  and  settle  their  rooms  for  them  at  the  hotel. 

**  Which  means,'*  exclaimed  the  Other-one,  '*  that  we  are  to 
lose  our  picturesque  and  intelligent  Bashir,  and  we  shall  have 
to  conduct  ourselves!  ** 

The  Commander  looked  up  from  the  map  of  Tunisia  which 
he  was  intently  studying. 

*  *  I  think  we  have  now  been  long  enough  in  the  country  to 
*  paddle  our  own  canoe  *  anywhere.  Now,  as  soon  as  you  can 
get  ready,  we  will  start  on  our  trip,  for  the  Desert  and 
the  Troglodyte  country,  the  most  interesting  we  have  as 
yet  seen,  and  on  which  trip  you  must  take  the  least  possible 
baggage." 

So  the  Motorists  were  soon  on  the  road,  their  baggage  re- 
duced to  the  smallest  dimensions,  bound  for  the  country  of 
the  mysterious  Troglodytes. 

The  sky  was  a  dull  gray,  with  rifts  opening  here  and  there 
to  let  patches  of  deep  blue  show  through  them.  The  air 
seemed  devoid  of  life  and  not  the  slightest  breeze  stirred  the 
foliage  of  the  trees.  The  car  soon  left  Tunis  behind  and  went 
along  the  road  not  far  from  the  sea,  now  a  dull  blue  with 
glistening  silver  light  where  the  sun 's  rays  shone  on  it  from  the 
rifts  in  the  clouds.     There  was  a  glimpse  of  white  Sidi-bou 

[379] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

Sa'id  and  the  dull  green  hill  and  plain  of  Carthage,  then  vine- 
yards, widespreading,  shut  the  sea  away.  Suddenly  there 
came  a  puff  of  wind  which  died  away  with  a  long  sigh ;  then 
again  and  again  the  puffs  came,  and  sand  began  to  rattle 
against  the  back  of  the  car,  while  the  atmosphere  ahead  and 
all  around  was  filled  with  it.  The  landscape  lost  its  usual 
brilliant  coloring,  the  greens  of  the  fields  of  barley  were 
turned  to  dull  silver  with  the  wind  sweeping  across  them,  and 
the  olive-trees  were  silvery  too.  The  most  vivid  colorings  to 
be  seen  were  the  patches  of  blue  borage,  and  the  wild  buglos 
and  alkanet  growing  in  dense  masses  by  the  roadside  or  in 
the  fields.  The  rugged  peaks  of  Zaghouan  were  blurred.  On 
the  plain  were  the  Bedouin  tents  enfolded  by  their  hedges  of 
camel-thorn  bushes,  the  flocks  and  herds  huddled  together  to 
resist  better  the  sweep  of  the  wind,  the  camels  lying  down, 
their  long  heads  resting  on  the  ground.  Scarcely  any  of  the 
nomads  were  to  be  seen  outside  their  tents,  although  in  one 
field  two  or  three  men,  braving  the  wind,  were  ploughing  with 
great  unwieldy  camels ;  a  curious  sight  to  see,  with  the  ploughs 
of  crooked  sticks  dating  back  to  Abraham's  time.  Farther 
on  there  was  a  blaze  of  genesta  in  a  waste  place,  but  the  aspho- 
del looked  pallid  and  forlorn,  its  long  stalks  of  flowers  wav- 
ing in  the  wind,  and  its  pungent  odor  flung  far  and  wide. 

Still  on,  the  sand  beating  against  the  car.  At  one  side 
there  loomed  up,  on  a  mound  in  a  green  barley  field,  a  huge 
round  mass  of  stones  and  masonry  about  thirty-six  feet  high, 
a  ruined  Roman  mausoleum  without  the  top,  much  like  the 
one  of  Caecilius  Metellus  at  Rome.  Nothing  is  known  about  it, 
except  that  it  encloses  a  vaulted  chamber,  and  the  Arabs  call 
it  Kasr-Menara,  or  the  castle  of  the  lighthouse.  Beyond,  at 
the  right,  were  many  fragments  of  Roman  ruins  and  the 
arches  of  an  ancient  bridge  over  a  dry  stream,  showing  that 
here  must  have  once  flourished  a  great  city. 

About  a  hundred  kiloraetres  from  Tunis  the  road  ran 
through  groves  of  olives,  and  great  vineyards  stretched  away 
to  the  horizon  line.  The  car  passed  yards  and  shops  where 
great  rolls  of  the  alfa  grass  were  being  prepared  for  export ; 

[  380  ] 


A  TRIP   TO  MEDENINB 

then  entered  Enfidaville,  a  very  modern-looking  town,  with 
its  railroad  station,  post-office,  French  villas,  and  houses  with 
French  windows  and  balconies  —  consequently  very  uninter- 
esting to  one  of  the  party,  at  least.  But  Enfidaville  is  the  cen- 
tre of  administration  for  the  French-African  Society,  whose 
property  here  covers  some  three  hundred  thousand  acres  and 
was  once  the  subject  of  a  great  dispute  between  the  French 
and  the  Tunisians,  which  is  considered  to  be  one  of  the  causes 
leading  up  to  the  French  Protectorate  in  Tunisia.  This  very 
rich  property  had  been  granted  by  the  bey  to  one  of  the  prime 
ministers  of  Tunis  as  a  reward  for  having  obtained  the  right 
of  succession  to  the  bey  lie  by  members  of  the  bey's  family. 
When  the  minister  wished  to  leave  Tunis,  not  being  able  to 
dispose  of  the  property  to  any  of  his  own  countrymen,  he  sold 
it  to  the  French  Company,  the  Societe-Franco-Africaine.  The 
Tunisians  then  tried  to  make  this  sale  void  by  using  the  Arab 
right  of  preemption.  As  the  result  of  a  law  suit  this  big  es- 
tate—  a  small  kingdom  in  itself  —  remained  in  the  hands  of 
the  Societe-FrancO'Africaine.  It  is  rich  in  olive  plantations, 
and  there  is  much  grain.  There  is  a  fine  mineral  spring  here, 
rising  in  a  mountain  near,  called  the  Ain-Garcia,  the  water  of 
which  is  used  all  over  Tunis  and  is  exported  to  Europe.  It 
has  a  very  large  and  profitable  business. 

There  was  a  lull  in  the  wind  as  they  approached  Sousse,  near 
which  the  car  rolled  through  a  long  Mussulman  cemetery  with 
a  white,  box-like  enclosure  for  each  grave  and  the  upright 
headpieces,  also  white.  Under  the  walls  of  Sousa  (Sousse  in 
French)  the  Other-one  said: 

' '  You  remember  this  was  the  ancient  Hadramentum,  which 
served  Hannibal  as  a  base  for  his  operations  against  Scipio; 
and  as  he  is  one  of  my  heroes,  this  makes  Sousa  most  interest- 
ing to  me;  but  were  it  not  for  the  great  white  tomb  of  the 
marabout  and  the  line  of  crenellated  walls,  I  should  think 
this  the  most  modern  of  French  towns.** 

They  were  now  passing  through  the  European  quarter  with 
its  shops  and  balconied  houses.  Adrian  stopped  the  car  before 
a  little,  friendly-looking  hotel  not  far  from  the  sea.     There 

[381] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

issued  forth  from  this,  on  a  run,  a  most  jolly-looking  Arab 
wearing  a  brown  gandoura  embroidered  in  heavy  white  wool. 
His  red  Chechia  was  pushed  back  on  his  head,  the  long  tassel 
swinging  with  the  hurry  of  his  movements.  He  welcomed  the 
travellers  as  if  they  were  old  friends  and  at  once  announced 
himself  as  the  guide  of  the  hotel.  The  pleasant  landlady, 
with  two  smiling,  pretty  daughters,  met  them  at  the  door, 
also  in  a  most  friendly  way,  and  ushered  them  up  into  a  clean 
little  bedroom  hung  with  dainty  chintz,  where  they  might  re- 
fresh themselves  after  the  long,  windy  ride.  They  felt  that 
here  was  another  oasis  in  the  desert  of  African  hotels  —  an 
opinion  that  the  delicious  luncheon,  served  in  a  bright  and 
cheerful  dining-room,  confirmed. 

*  *  Decidedly, ' '  said  the  Commander,  * '  we  must  return  here 
for  a  day  or  two  of  rest  and  to  make  some  excursions  out  of 
here.  There  are  some  things  to  see  in  this  town,  but  we  are 
to  leave  sight-seeing  here  until  our  return.'* 

They  left  this  haven  of  rest  and  peace  with  regret.  The 
walls  of  Sousse  soon  were  lost  to  view  as  the  road  ran  down 
over  a  wide  plain  and  then  through  vast  groves  of  olive-trees. 

' '  How  many  plantations  of  olives  we  see  here !  There  are 
old  trees  which  look  as  if  they  had  been  here  in  the  time  of 
the  Romans,*'  said  the  Commander  as  they  were  passing  a 
grove  of  hoary  trees.  "  It  is  said  that  then  they  used  olive 
oil  much  more  extensively  than  now,  and  too,  in  all  the  coun- 
tries subdued  by  Rome,  as  this  Northern  Africa.  It  had 
almost  the  highest  rank  among  vegetable  products." 

The  road  now  ran  away  from  the  sea  and  there  were  fewer 
and  fewer  plantations  of  olives,  and  at  length,  the  travellers 
saw  before  them  the  Colosseum  of  Djem,  a  huge,  oblong  mass 
crowning  a  plateau.  This  mass  grew  more  and  more  distinct, 
and  they  were  astonished  as  they  drew  near,  in  spite  of  what 
had  been  told  them,  to  see  this  enormous  colosseum,  away  out 
here  on  this  wide,  barren  plain,  where  not  a  habitation  was 
visible. 

' '  How  wonderful,  *  *  exclaimed  the  Commander,  * '  to  see 
this  huge  building  which  held  sixty  thousand  people  out  here 

[  382  ] 


A  TRIP   TO  MEDENINE 

on  this  uncultivated  plain!  There  must  have  been  a  great 
city  to  maintain  it,  and  yet  there  seems  never  to  have  been 
any  visible  means  of  support  for  the  inhabitants  of  such  an 
important  town ;  nor  can  there  have  been  any  water  here.  * ' 

'*  What  I  have  found  out  about  it,"  returned  the  Other- 
one,  **  is  that  it  was  named  Thysdrus  and  was  of  little  im- 
portance in  the  time  of  Caesar,  but  it  developed  later,  and  in 
the  third  century  of  our  era  was  one  of  the  richest  cities  of 
North  Africa ;  this  city,  as  well  as  Sousse,  owed  its  prosperity 
to  the  culture  of  the  olive  in  the  surrounding  country.  They 
say  this  amphitheatre  was  used  as  a  fortress  at  the  end  of  the 
seventh  century  by  Kahenna,  the  famous  Berber  queen,  in 
her  struggles  against  the  invading  Arab  hordes." 

The  car  drew  up  under  the  shadow  of  the  colosseum  and 
the  travellers  got  out  to  walk  around  it  and  study  its  details. 
There  is  a  wretched  Arab  village  at  one  side,  whose  inhab- 
itants have  used  the  colosseum  as  a  quarry,  building  their 
houses  with  the  stones  from  it  in  lieu  of  sun-dried  bricks ;  but 
there  are  some  fine  door  frames  and  lintels  with  a  column 
here  and  there.  Some  ragged  children  ran  out  from  the  vil- 
lage, and  a  lank  Arab  pressed  his  services  on  the  travellers 
saying  he  was  the  guardian  of  the  building.  They  were  un- 
able to  shake  him  off  and  he  followed  them  around,  proffer- 
ing, unasked,  such  feeble  information  as  he  had  picked  up 
about  the  colosseum.  They  entered  first  the  arena,  which  has 
been  pretty  well  excavated  and  cleaned  out.  There  are  three 
series  of  arcades  flanked  with  half  columns  Composite  or  Cor- 
inthian. Above  there  was  a  crowning  wall,  with  pilasters,  but 
this,  with  the  rows  of  seats  and  the  steps,  have  all  disappeared. 
The  colosseum  runs  from  east  to  west,  and  has  the  long 
ellipse  of  such  buildings.  The  greater  axis  is  489  feet,  and 
the  smaller  407.  Its  circumference  is  twelve  hundred  feet. 
The  arena  is  213  feet  long  and  173  wide.  The  walls  are  six 
feet  thick,  which  leaves  galleries  sixty  feet  wide.  There  were 
once  four  stories.  On  the  side  toward  the  village  the  galleries 
are  in  the  best  preservation.  When  there  were  exhibitions  of 
gladiators  here,  or  Christian  martyrs  were  exposed  to  wild 

[383] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

beasts,  sixty  thousand  people  could  be  accommodated  to  look 
down  on  them.  The  Colosseum  at  Rome  held  only  ten  thou- 
sand more  and  this  is  really  much  more  imposing  than  that. ' ' 

**  It  is  interesting  here  to  recall  the  heroic  efforts  of  La 
Kahenna,  the  Berber  queen.  I  think  more  about  her  here 
than  about  the  blood-thirsty,  Pagan,  Roman  colonists,"  said 
the  Other-one.  *  *  When  she  had  defeated  Hassan  ibn  Naaman 
and  driven  him  to  Tripoli,  "he  returned  with  reinforcements. 
She  entrenched  herself  strongly  here  and  maintained  a  long 
siege.  Kahenna 's  fortress  was  so  well  supplied  that  her 
soldiers  mockingly  threw  down  fresh  fish  to  the  besiegers  when 
the  latter  were  suffering  for  food.  The  Arabs  say  she  made 
great  subterranean  passages  to  the  sea  near  Sallecta.  Three 
horsemen  could  ride  abreast  in  them  but  the  passages  have 
never,  as  yet,  been  discovered.  For  years  the  Arabs  called 
this  place  Kasr-el-Kahenna,  or  the  palace  of  the  sorceress.' ' 

Then  the  Two  went  to  get  an  outside  view  of  this  noble 
Colosseum,  so  imposing  even  in  its  ruined  state,  and  to  see  the 
curious  and  wretched  Arab  village.  The  little  street  on 
the  side  where  the  galleries  of  the  great  amphitheatre  were  in 
the  least  ruined  condition  was  lined  with  small  booths,  domi- 
nated by  an  ancient  mosque,  and  natives  were  thronging 
around  the  booths  engaged  in  selling  or  buying  the  few  com- 
modities they  possessed.  They  paid  little  heed  to  the  stran- 
gers, but  went  on  with  their  trading.  At  one  house,  with  a 
fine  doorway  of  carved  stone  —  a  fragment  taken  from  the 
ruins  undoubtedly  —  there  was  gathered  a  group  of  musicians 
who  were  making  weird  and  plaintive  sounds  with  their  rude 
instruments.  A  small  girl  was  beating  the  derhouka,  a 
wrinkled  old  fellow  was  blowing  on  a  pipe  and  another  was 
singing  a  minor  strain  of  two  or  three  tones.  Rude  as  it  was, 
the  plaintive  music  touched  the  heart  with  a  dull  pain.  It 
seemed  a  lament  for  that  far  past,  when,  judging  by  this 
noble  monument  of  stone  towering  above  the  miserable  vil- 
lage— there  must  have  been  that  beauty  in  art,  that  peace 
and  happiness  for  which  man,  in  this  modern  life,  is  ever 
striving  but  never  attains. 

[384] 


THE  COLOSSEUM   AT   D.TEM 


INTERIOR  OF  THE  COLOSSEUM  AT  DJEM 


BEFORE  THE  WALLS  OF  SFAX 


A  TRIP    TO   MEDENINE 

After  the  clamors  of  the  small  girl  with  the  dcrhouka  had 
been  satisfied,  the  Two  went  out  to  the  car,  followed  by  a 
group  of  curious  natives.  Near  the  car  stood  a  number  of  large 
camels,  unusually  peaceful  in  appearance,  their  humps  and 
most  of  their  backs  covered  with  a  great  basket-like  mat  of 
dried  grass, —  the  first  evidence  of  any  care  for  these  wretched 
animals  which  the  travellers  had  seen  in  this  country.  Across 
the  plain  again,  and  through  more  acres  of  olive-trees,  the  car 
drew  near  Sfax,  the  scent  of  its  gardens  filling  the  now  al- 
most quiet  air.  The  road  ran  by  many  of  these  gardens,  their 
fruit  trees  visible  through  openings  in  the  high  banks  or  mud 
walls  which  were  crowned  with  the  prickly  pear  which  makes 
an  impenetrable  fence.  These  gardens  of  Sfax  yield  many 
roses  and  other  flowers  cultivated  for  the  essence  which  is 
distilled  for  perfume.  In  places  near  the  town,  the  Com- 
mander observed  many  large,  oblong,  high,  white  platforms, 
plastered  over,  with  a  depression  in  the  centre,  where  there 
was  a  large  opening.     They  were  Arab  cisterns  for  rain  water. 

The  road  now  became  more  animated,  with  laden  donkeys, 
a  camel  or  two  and  many  natives  trudging  along  in  the  dust 
which  was  rising  in  clouds  from  flocks  of  sheep  and  goats. 
Soon  the  walls  and  towers  of  Sfax,  one  hundred  and  twenty- 
nine  kilometres  from  Sousse,  became  visible.  The  car  ran 
near  the  blue  sea ;  the  harbor  was  full  of  shipping  and  fishing- 
boats  drawn  up  beside  the  long  stone  quay.  The  European 
quarter  lies  outside  the  mediaeval-looking  walls  which  enclose 
the  old  Arab  city.  The  car  drew  up  before  a  rather  preten- 
tious hotel,  the  landlady  of  which,  reinforced  by  a  waiter  or 
two,  greeted  the  travellers  in  a  most  ladylike  and  amiable 
manner.  The  accommodations  she  offered  them,  however, 
were  not  of  the  same  engaging  quality,  and  they  hastened  to 
leave  the  little,  dark,  dirty  rooms  assigned  them  as  soon  as 
they  had  shaken  the  sand  from  their  clothes.  They  went  for 
a  walk  down  by  the  picturesque  shipping  at  the  quays  which 
thp  Commander  wished  to  see,  leaving  the  old  town  to  be 
visitod  in  the  morning. 

*'  The   little  I  have  learned  about  this  town,"  said  the 

[385] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

Other-one,  as  they  walked  down  the  street  to  the  harbor,  '  *  is 
this : —  Sf ax  is  the  ancient  Taparura,  a  city  of  Phoenician  ori- 
gin. Until  the  eighth  century,  Arab  historians  say,  it  was  a 
flourishing  and  important  city  with  monumental  buildings, 
manufactories,  rich  people,  beautiful  gardens,  and  produc- 
tive fisheries.  In  recent  times  it  was  the  only  place  on  the 
coast  which  offered  any  resistance  to  French  occupation.  A 
French  squadron  of  nine  ironclads  and  four  gunboats  soon 
silenced  the  guns  of  the  kasba,  and  then  the  town  submitted. 
Since  then  (1881),  trade  and  commerce  have  made  rapid  ad- 
vancement in  Sfax.  The  modern  name  comes  from  the 
Arabic  word  which  means  cucumber  —  fakous, —  on  account 
of  the  quantities  of  this  vegetable  which  grow  in  this 
neighborhood. ' ' 

As  they  came  down  to  the  quay,  which  was  swarming  with 
a  picturesque  population,  they  stopped  to  look  at  the  boats, 
when  a  man  standing  near  addressed  them  in  their  own 
tongue,  expressing  himself  well,  but  with  a  slight  accent. 

**  You  are  strangers  here?  You  find  this  an  interesting 
harbor?  I  may  be  able  to  tell  you  something  about  the  fish- 
eries here  which  you  may  like  to  know.  Here  you  see  fishing 
and  sponge  boats  of  all  sorts  and  this  town  is  certainly  an 
important  place  for  the  industry.  The  configuration  of  the 
coast  is  very  flat.  The  tide  covers  and  uncovers  widely  for 
over  two  kilometres,  and  this  is  favorable  for  the  establish- 
ment of  fisheries  fixed  by  wicker  fencing.  Besides  these, 
there  are  certain  special  fisheries  in  the  region  —  that  of 
polyps,  for  instance  —  which  are  mostly  exported  to  Greece; 
and  that  of  sponges,  which  bring  here  many  Greek  and  Ital- 
ian fishermen.  The  fishing  for  sponges  occupies  here  alone 
six  hundred  Sicilian  vessels,  fifty  Greek  boats,  and  six  hun- 
dred and  fifty  native  boats,  in  the  season  from  January  first 
to  the  first  of  October.  They  collect  the  sponges  with  the  tri- 
dent, or  with  a  dragging  net  and  by  divers. 

**  Besides  the  fisheries,  there  is  the  great  olive  industry.  In 
ancient  times  the  olive-tree  made  the  riches  of  the  country, 
and  it  has  taken  on  much  development  in  the  last  century. 

[386] 


A  TRIP    TO   MEDENINE 

The  native  population  here  has  proved  to  have  exceptional 
qualities.  P.  Bourde  says :  *  It  seems  as  if  the  spirit  of  the 
antique  planters  had  been  perpetuated  in  this  most  intelli- 
gent and  industrious  people.  Without  any  teaching  from 
outside,  with  only  their  own  observations,  they  have  arrived 
at  such  a  degree  of  perfection  in  the  olive  culture  that  Euro- 
pean agricultural  science  has  nothing  to  add  to  their  meth- 
ods.* 

**  You  will  find  the  old  city  very  interesting.  Get  a  young 
native  who  speaks  French  to  show  you  about,  which  he  will 
do  for  a  very  small  fee.  He  is  better  than  the  self-important 
guides  from  the  hotels.  There  is  a  fine  mosque  with  a  high 
minaret,  but  you  can 't  go  into  it.  The  streets  are  narrow  and 
very  dirty  but  you  will  find  them  very  picturesque,  though 
noisy,  and  the  souks  are  very  animated. 

**  The  long  brown  coat  the  natives  wear  mostly,  with  the 
heavy,  cream-colored  embroidery,  is  called  the  gandoura.  The 
green  turbans  are  worn  by  descendants  of  the  Prophet,  or  by 
those  who  have  made  the  pilgrimage  to  Mecca.  You  will  see 
the  native  dandies  in  picturesque  clothes,  the  gandoura  of 
pale  greens,  blues,  or  dull  reds,  with  beautiful  embroidery 
on  them,  in  contrasting  colors.'* 

Thanking  this  most  communicative  and  agreeable  man,  the 
Two  walked  on  down  the  long  quay.  The  sky  was  now  of  a 
pomegranate  color  and  the  slender  masts  of  the  fishing-boats 
were  etched  against  it.  Some  boats  with  yellow-brown  lateen 
sails  set,  were  dropping  out  of  the  harbor.  Late  as  it  was, 
many  fishermen  were  cleaning  their  boats  or  getting  their 
nets  in  order  for  the  morrow  —  old,  bronzed  Sicilians  with 
gold  hoops  in  their  ears,  swarthy  Greeks,  and  natives  in 
ragged,  rough  gandouras,  all  jabbering  so  that  the  tower  of 
Babel  would  not  have  been  a  circumstance  to  it.  Farther  up 
the  quay,  a  freight  boat  was  unloading  some  queer-looking, 
huge  bundles  and  packages.  The  Two  wandered  on  until  the 
color  faded  out  of  the  sky  and  the  old  sailors  ceased  from 
their  labors.  Then  they  left  the  fascinating  place  to  seek 
their  uninteresting  room  at  the  pretentious  hotel. 

[  387  ] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

In  the  morning  the  sun  was  shining  down  with  great  bril- 
liance and  heat,  and  the  sky  was  a  vivid  blue.  The  white 
houses  of  the  town  were  dazzling  under  it.  The  one-eyed 
guide  at  the  hotel  was  so  insistent  that  the  travellers  could  do 
no  more  than  take  him,  and  he  turned  out  less  obnoxious  and 
more  intelligent  than  they  had  expected. 

They  went  up  through  the  gate  of  the  Diwan  in  the  great 
crenellated  walls,  and  entered  into  another  life  as  distinct 
from  the  European  as  can  well  be  imagined  —  streets  filled 
with  a  population  most  picturesque  and  an  animation  as  vivid 
as  any  the  travellers  had  yet  seen.  There  was  much  frying 
and  cooking  going  on  at  that  early  hour  —  enough,  it  seemed 
to  the  Other-one,  for  the  provision  of  the  entire  city  of  Sfax. 
In  little  dens,  fat  and  pasty-looking  natives  skilfully  manipu- 
lated great  pans  of  boiling  oil,  and  dropped  therein  various 
tidbits  which  sizzled  and  smelled  rather  good,  though  myste- 
rious and  uninviting  as  to  appearance.  The  Other-one  was 
minded  to  try  a  certain  sort  of  pancake  which  certainly 
looked  rather  appetizing.  A  skinny  boy  with  a  red  skull-cap 
and  a  dirty  white  gandoura,  at  an  order  from  the  guide  took 
some  thin  dough  out  of  a  great  jar  and  beat  it,  with  an  egg, 
in  a  small  cup  until  it  was  light  and  foamy ;  then  he  handed 
it  to  the  fat  cook  presiding  there,  who  dropped  it  into  a  large 
pan  of  boiling  oil  over  a  charcoal  fire.  The  dough  bubbled 
and  sputtered  and  then  rose  to  a  light  and  brown  puffy  pan- 
cake, which  the  cook  ladled  out  onto  a  dirty  plate,  and  which, 
after  aU,  the  Other-one  decided  she  did  not  want  —  to  the 
surprise  and  pleasure  of  the  guide,  who,  having  handed  over 
the  sou  for  it,  could  not  let  it  be  lost  and  burned  his  mouth 
with  it  in  a  hasty  attempt  to  swallow  it  without  being  seen. 

Then  he  hurried  the  two  up  the  narrow  street  by  the  Great 
Mosque,  its  facade  ornamented  with  a  series  of  small  arches. 
Here  are  the  souks  under  long  covered  galleries,  with  the 
little  dens  in  which  are  exposed  all  the  varied  articles  that 
go  to  make  up  the  Eastern  bazaar,  each  trade  by  itself.  Some 
booths  were  gay  with  high-backed,  embroidered  saddles  and 
other  leather  articles  red,  blue,   and  yellow;   and  here,   in 

[388] 


A  TRIP    TO   MEDENINE 

one  or  two  booths,  hung  those  enormous  hats  of  straw,  some 
nearly  three  feet  across,  decorated  with  leather  cut  in  various 
designs,  and  great  bunches  of  tassels  around  the  brim.  Down 
on  the  Desert  the  travellers  had  seen  one  or  two  of  these. 
There  was  an  animated  crowd  surging  through  these  souks 
and  the  dandies  in  their  gandouras  of  delicate  colors  em- 
broidered in  contrasting  tones,  with  a  rose  or  a  carnation 
stuck  behind  the  ear,  walked,  or  rather,  lounged  indolently 
along.  The  Other-one  thought  these  flowers  a  luxury  of  the 
well-to-do  until  she  noticed  that  even  the  dirty  black  Soudan- 
ese in  their  ragged  gandouras,  and  the  gamins,  too,  nearly  all, 
wore  the  flower  behind  the  ear ;  and  generally  it  was  the  car- 
nation. It  was  certainly  most  agreeable  to  come  in  out  of  the 
hot  sun  under  the  cool  shade  of  these  covered  souks,  but  when 
the  guide  saw  that  his  patrons  did  not  care  for  purchasing, 
he  hurried  them  away  and  through  a  gate  which,  he  said, 
was  the  Bab  Djebli.  They  came  out  upon  the  market-place 
outside  the  wall.  Just  under  the  agreeable  shade  of  these 
high  walls  was  a  motley  assemblage  of  dealers  and  workers  in 
metal,  blacksmiths,  dyers,  and  others,  with  all  the  implements 
of  their  labor  or  calling  spread  out  before  them.  Here  the 
vender  of  palm  wine  —  a  sweet,  rather  sickly  diiiik  made 
from  the  palm  sap  —  drove  a  thriving  trade.  Here  was  the 
greatest  animation.  Some  natives  were  gathering  together 
some  sheep  and  goats,  evidently  for  a  sale,  and  there  was 
much  guttural  gabbling  and  violent  gesture.  Beyond  another 
gate  was  a  fondouk  for  camels  and  two  or  three  of  the  un- 
wieldy creatures  were  coming  out  of  the  great  open  entrance. 
Beyond  this  one  could  see  the  green  of  many  gardens,  with 
white  villas  showing  through  the  trees. 

The  guide  proposed,  with  much  eagerness,  that  they  should 
visit  a  beautiful  garden  owned  by  a  very  rich  man  —  a  friend 
of  his,  he  said,  where  they  would  be  welcomed  with  pleasure 
and  where  essences  from  many  flowers  were  distilled. 

**  No!  **  said  the  Commander,  **  we  must  go,  but  if  you 
want  the  perfume  of  these  flowers,  there  it  is.'*  They  were 
passing  a  little  den  which  had  on  its  shelves  an  array  of  those 

[389] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

fascinating  little  gilt  bottles  of  the  Orient  and  just  then  an 
old  Arab  was  handing  to  the  grave,  turbaned,  presiding  genius 
there,  a  great  basket  of  rose  petals. 

**  Here,  certainly,  one  can  get  the  real  attar  of  rose,*'  said 
the  Other-one,  and  she  asked  the  guide  to  buy  her  a  small  bot- 
tle of  it.  Certainly  it  was  much  cheaper  than  in  the  souk  of 
the  perfumer  at  Tunis.  But  the  Commander  fretted  with  im- 
patience at  the  slow  movements  of  the  grave  Oriental  as  he 
dropped  the  precious  essence  in  one  of  the  tiny  gilt  bottles 
in  a  most  provokingly  slow  way  from  a  thick  glass  dropper. 

Soon  the  crenellated  walls  of  Sfax  were  left  far  behind, 
and  the  car  was  rolling  down  on  the  veritable  Desert,  where 
there  were  many  camels  to  be  seen  —  great  creatures  feeding, 
for  a  wonder,  at  their  ease.  There  were  caravans  on  the 
road,  and  the  car  brought  fear  to  moving  nomad  families. 
There  were  many  wayside  wells  where  picturesque  groups 
were  reposing,  or  drawing  water  by  means  of  a  scraggy  don- 
key or  mule  hitched  to  a  long  rope  going  over  a  high  frame- 
work of  wood ;  at  the  other  end  of  the  rope  was  a  great  bag 
of  cowskin  which  dropped  far  below  with  a  splash,  as  the 
donkey  or  mule  approached  the  well,  and  came  up  brimming 
with  water  as  he  walked  away.  At  one  place  was  a  woman 
tugging  at  the  rope  with  her  blue  draperies  flying,  while  two 
or  three  men  lounged  near.  Once  or  twice  the  Commander 
stopped  the  car  and  leaped  quickly  out,  as  he  caught  the 
gleam  of  a  necklace  or  a  bracelet  of  unusual  pattern.  Then 
ensued  that  method  of  bargaining  in  which  he  was  an  adept, 
and  as  usual,  too,  it  was  the  man  who  took  the  silver  pieces 
the  Commander  handed  out. 

Now,  afar,  the  travellers  saw  the  line  of  the  great  chotts 
or  salt  lakes,  of  which  they  had  previously  caught  a  glimpse 
on  the  road  to  Touggourt.  They  are  below  the  level  of  the 
sea,  and  extend  nearly  four  hundred  kilometres.  Once  or 
t\vice  the  Motorists  really  saw  a  mirage.  In  the  distance 
across  the  shimmering  heat  of  the  sand,  a  long  line  of  glisten- 
ing water  appeared,  and  groves  of  palms  giving  promise  of 
delightful  shade ;  then  they  faded  away  as  the  car  moved  on. 

[390] 


^m\  >' 


A  STREET  IX  (iAi'.iis.  ox  'nil-;  u'oAi)  lo  \i  I ;i > I :x I XK 


A  FAMILY  AT  MEDENINE 


.■PP'^'^P^VII 

■MH   " 

B^" 

^^Ih^k  *                              Jl 

^l:!uv.        , 

iBjF.:.xfr| 

r*^4il  d 

.4.W  ,■  ' ' ^^^'W'''^^*^ B 

It    miffl 

VIEW    OF   A   STEEET    IN    THE    TROGLODYTE    VILLAGE    OF 
MATAMEUR,    NEAR   MEDENINE 


A  TRIP   TO  MEDENINE 

Sometimes  a  dazzling  blue  line  showed  at  the  left.  This  was 
the  sea,  and  it  came  oftener  into  view  as  they  drew  near  the 
beautiful  oasis  of  Gabes,  where  the  road  wound  along  by  gar- 
dens and  great  palms  which  threw  most  grateful  shade  over 
the  travellers  and  flecked  the  ground  with  beautiful  patterns 
of  light  and  shade.  Then  the  road  came  out  of  the  green 
shade  and  crossed  the  cool  little  river  of  Gabes,  flowing  over 
its  rocky  bed.  A  herd  of  great  camels  were  swaying  up  from 
its  banks ;  kneeling  on  the  border,  nomad  women  were  wash- 
ing, picturesquely  clad  in  blues  and  reds.  The  streets  of 
Gabes,  and  also  its  houses,  were  dazzlingly  white,  and  its 
primitive  inns  gave  small  promise  of  refreshment.  The 
travellers  selected  the  one,  of  two  or  three,  that  seemed 
the  least  unlikely,  but  regretted  their  choice  when  they  saw 
the  coarse,  fat  landlord,  who,  like  an  overfed  spider,  stood 
at  the  door  to  wave  them  into  a  dirty  dining-room  where  some 
officers  at  a  long  table  were  making  merry  over  several  bottles 
of  wine. 

There  was  nothing  to  detain  the  travellers  here,  so  the  car 
fled  away  to  Medenine.  The  road  paralleled  a  country  track 
on  the  right  just  out  of  Galxs.  wliich,  the  Commander  said, 
was  the  way  to  the  country  of  the  Alatmatas,  the  most  inter- 
esting of  all  troglodytes.  "  I  am  hoping  we  may  find  the 
road  passable  for  the  car  when  we  come  back,  though  it  will 
not  be  so  should  it  rain  —  and  it  does  rain  here  sometimes, '  * 
he  said.  Misty  mountains  now  showed  up  at  the  left,  and  the 
country  became  rolling.  Soon,  on  a  hill  at  the  right,  not  far 
from  Medenine,  a  curious  village  could  be  seen,  like  rows  of 
beehives. 

'*  That,**  said  the  Commander,  always  well  up  in  roads  and 
towns  from  much  studying  of  his  Cartes  Tarides,  *  *  is  the  vil- 
lage of  Matameur,  a  smaller  edition  of  Medenine.** 

At  length,  some  eighty  kilometres  from  Sfax,  there  came 
into  sight  the  curious  houses  of  the  native  village  of  Medenine, 
built  in  long  rows  with  barrel-shaped  roofs  and  blank,  win- 
dowless,  doorless  walls  toward  the  street,  all  close  together 
like  beehives.     The  rude  white  minaret  of  a  mosque  showed 

[391] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

at  the  right,  and  there  were  a  few  palm-trees  here  and  there. 
The  Commander  directed  the  chauffeur  to  run  down  to  the 
European  quarter  to  get  settled  for  the  night.  Here  are  the 
most  primitive  hotel,  the  barracks  for  the  cavalry  and  infan- 
try, the  Bureau  des  Af  aires  Indigenes,  and  nothing  more. 

The  Other-one  braced  herself  to  meet  the  problems  of  poor 
food  and  dirty  rooms,  but  was  most  agreeably  surprised  to 
find  a  clean  and  sunny  little  Italian  padrona,  who  met  the 
tired  travellers  with  a  smile  and  led  them  up  to  simple  but 
very  clean  rooms. 

As  it  was  yet  early,  they  hastened  away  to  view  the  town, 
taking  with  them  as  a  guide  the  clean  and  intelligent-looking 
native  boy,  man-of-all-work  at  the  hotel,  whose  face  shone 
with  joy  at  the  prospect  of  a  fee.  He  led  them  about  half  a 
kilometre  from  the  barracks  into  one  of  the  most  curious  vil- 
lages it  had  ever  been  their  good  fortune  to  see.  Its  vaulted 
houses  were  made  of  small  stones,  plastered  over  with  mud 
and  built  in  long  rows  together,  some  running  round  a  square 
and  others  up  narrow  lanes.  Outside,  as  stated  before,  they 
presented  a  blank  wall  to  the  street,  but  toward  the  squares 
there  were  rude  doors  for  each  of  the  stories  which  numbered 
four  or  five  in  some  houses.  Projecting  stones  outside  formed 
a  sort  of  rude  stair  by  which  the  owner  could  climb  to  the 
upper  stories. 

*'  But  where  are  all  the  people?  "  asked  the  Commander. 
''  It  looks  like  a  deserted  village!  '* 

By  dint  of  much  questioning  the  Other-one  learned  from 
the  boy  something  like  this: — That  these  people  (semi-troglo- 
dytes) belong  to  the  Berber  tribe  of  the  Tuasin,  and  there  are 
something  like  five  thousand  people  in  the  ksar,  or  settlement. 
They  have  many  camels  and  sheep.  They  go  out  at  the  sea- 
son for  planting  grain  and  cultivate  their  patches  on  the 
Desert.  They  live  in  tents  and  return  only  after  the  harvest. 
They  leave  their  houses  in  care  of  about  two  hundred  guar- 
dians. When  the  harvest  is  over  they  return,  bringing 
with  them  their  barley,  maize,  beans,  sorghum,  and  millet, 
which  they  store  in  the  upper  stories  of  their  houses. 

[392] 


A   TRIP    TO   MEDENINE 

In  some  of  the  squares  the  travellers  observed  little  shacks, 
built  of  brush,  near  some  of  the  houses.  The  boy  told  them 
the  guardians  did  their  cooking  in  them.  It  was  certainly  a 
very  strange  sight  —  this  almost  deserted  village  with  its 
curious,  vaulted  houses,  veritable  caves  made  by  the  inhab- 
itants. It  seemed  to  the  Other-one  that  the  guide  was  a  youth- 
ful magician  who  had  evoked  from  the  Berber  past  a  weird 
village,  but  had  forgotten  to  people  it. 

The  few  natives  they  met  resembled  the  Arabs,  though 
much  darker  of  complexion,  owing,  probably,  to  their  semi- 
nomadic  life  on  the  hot  Desert ;  and  they  wore  much  the  same 
dress  —  a  dirty  or  yellow-white  burnous  and  the  Moslem's 
red  fez,  bound  generally  with  dirty  rags.  Each  man  carried 
a  long,  queer  piece  of  wood  with  nails  in  it,  which  was  used 
as  a  key,  and  he  always  locked  up  his  house  when  he  went  out, 
the  boy  told  them. 

Under  a  brilliant  sun  the  next  morning,  they  rode  up  for  a 
last  look  at  the  troglodyte  village,  which  the  lady  half  ex- 
pected to  find  had  vanished  in  the  night.  It  was,  however, 
more  real  under  the  bright  morning  sun,  and  the  wide 
market-place  was  a  scene  of  great  animation.  It  was  sur- 
rounded by  the  usual  low  buildings  with  arcades  which  are 
seen  in  all  Arab  villages.  There  were  groups  of  Arabs  and 
Jews  around  and  under  the  arcades,  and  all  through  the  mid- 
dle of  the  market-place  as  well.  Great  heaps  of  yellow  car- 
rots had  many  purchasers;  piles  of  dried  red  peppers  were 
not  so  popular,  but  there  were  many  buyers  gesticulating 
near  the  heaps  of  barley  and  other  grain.  There  were  stews 
sizzling  over  small  charcoal  fires,  and  these  were  much 
patronized. 

The  Commander  crossed  the  market-place  to  the  small  dens 
in  which  were  heaped  up  rolls  of  native  blankets  of  gay  colors, 
some  old  from  long  use  on  camels  and  in  tents.  He  quickly 
picked  out  three  or  four,  stained  and  with  holes  in  them  but 
rich  in  color  —  dull  browns,  soft  blues  and  reds  of  the  native 
dyes  —  and  he  drove  a  bargain  with  the  astute  Jewish  traders, 
who  praised  up  each  hole  as  adding  much  to  the  value  of  the 

[  393  ] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

blankets.  He  then  glanced  at  the  white-metal  necklaces,  fibu- 
lae, and  bracelets  that  a  vender  held  up  to  him  —  *  *  Just  mod- 
ern trash,'*  he  said. 

Taking  a  simple,  kindly-looking  native  who  had  followed 
them  everywhere  and  piling  him  with  the  rugs,  to  his  evident 
delight,  they  went  down  a  narrow  lane  overhung  by  the  cu- 
rious beehive  houses.  Near  one  corner  a  camel  was  standing, 
with  one  foot  hobbled,  and  he  looked  at  the  intruders  with  a 
disdainful  air.  Farther  on,  a  group  of  jet-black  Soudanese, 
men,  women,  and  children, —  the  women  with  their  wool 
braided  up  in  tight  little  corkscrews,  the  children  nearly 
naked  and  looking  as  if  carved  out  of  coal.  They  smiled  and 
jabbered  at  the  strangers  in  the  most  friendly  way.  They 
were  some  of  the  caretakers,  evidently.  Coming  down  to  one 
of  the  squares,  surrounded  by  the  beehive  houses,  the  Two 
found  it  lively  enough  this  morning,  and  crowds  of  the  na- 
tives were  sitting  on  the  ground  or  standing  in  groups,  while 
flocks  of  sheep  and  black  goats  filled  the  air  with  their 
bleating  and  cries.  The  natives  paid  little  attention  to  the 
strangers,  however,  but  went  on  with  their  trading. 

**  Where  do  all  these  people  come  from?  "  exclaimed  the 
Lady.  **  I  thought  most  of  the  inhabitants  were  off  in  the 
Desert  attending  to  their  grain  fields.  This  is  indeed  a  trans- 
formation scene !  ' ' 

But  away  from  the  two  market-places  the  village  was  as  de- 
serted and  melancholy  as  on  the  night  before.  In  one  square 
was  a  palm-tree  —  the  only  one  visible  anywhere,  which  seemed 
to  guard  a  rude  fountain,  also  the  only  place  for  water  visible 
in  the  village.  They  came  into  a  street  of  long,  low  white- 
washed houses,  windowless,  but  with  wide  open  doors  leading 
into  a  large  courtyard.  Peering  in,  the  Lady  saw  a  number 
of  doors  opening  into  small  dens.  Each  den  seemed  to  be  the 
apartment  of  a  separate  family,  and  each  family  to  have 
poured  into  the  court  where  it  pursued  its  domestic  labors 
without  regard  to  any  other.  There  were  only  women  and 
children  in  the  court,  and  the  women  were  variously  em- 
ployed in  cooking  over  small  charcoal  brasiers,  washing  in 

[394] 


A  TRIP   TO  MEDENINE 

large  pottery  pans,  examining  the  children's  heads,  raising 
much  dust  in  sweeping  out  the  small  dens,  and  all  in  the 
midst  of  noise,  jabbering,  scolding,  and  animation  which  filled 
the  courtyard  and  made  it  a  veritable  pandemonium.  Two  or 
three  women  and  children  came  running  out  when  they  saw 
the  Lady.  They  were  of  a  different  type  from  those  seen  in 
the  village  before  —  fairer  and  taller.  The  women  had  on 
curious  skull-caps  of  bright  color  and  decorated  heavily  in 
gold.  The  native  whom  the  travellers  had  employed  to  carry 
their  purchases,  now  produced  the  word  **  Jews/'  at  the  same 
time  pointing  into  the  courtyard. 

**  So  this  enterprising  race  are  even  down  here,  which 
seems  such  a  far-away  place,'*  said  the  Commander.  **  They 
are  the  traders  in  the  big  market-places,  undoubtedly,  and 
the  ones  with  whom  I  bargained  for  my  rug. '  * 

When  the  Other-one  had  snapped  a  Jewess  with  her  curi- 
ous cap,  the  Commander  said  they  really  must  be  off.  The 
native  delivered  up  his  roll  of  blankets  to  Adrian  and  stood 
aside  looking  sadly  at  the  car.  To  the  Commander's  utter 
astonishment  he  refused  the  two-franc  piece  offered  him,  and 
it  was  only  with  much  effort  that  he  could  be  made  to  take  it. 

**  Let  us  take  the  poor  devil  along  with  us  for  a  ride!  ** 
said  the  kind  Commander.  '*  We  can  drop  him  at  Mata- 
meur."  The  native  leaped  joyfully  to  the  seat  on  the  foot- 
board when  he  was  made  to  understand  the  Commander's 
wish,  and  seemed  not  to  have  the  least  fear  as  Adrian  put  the 
car  at  a  good  speed,  but  a  look  of  serene  content  replaced  the 
sad  expression  his  face  had  hitherto  worn. 

On  the  way,  when  at  the  foot  of  a  hill,  they  met  some 
groups  of  natives  and  there  stepped  out  of  one  a  very  pretty 
young  woman  in  blue  draperies  and  scarlet  head-covering. 
Across  her  hips  she  carried  a  brown  baby.  The  Commander 
stopped  short  upon  seeing  her,  and  exclaimed,  for  she  wore, 
not  only  a  necklace  of  an  unusual  pattern,  but  very  curious 
and  long  earrings  that  dangled  upon  her  shoulders  as  she 
cooed  and  shook  her  head  at  the  brown  baby.  With  his  usual 
directness  the  Commander  came  at  once  to  the  point  by  seiz- 

[395] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

ing  hold  of  the  necklace,  pointing  to  the  earrings  and  holding 
up  several  silver  pieces. 

The  pretty  creature  was  about  to  take  off  her  treasures, 
when  there  stepped  out  of  the  group,  a  black-browed,  ugly- 
looking  man  who  entered  into  a  loud  discussion  with  her, 
though  he  appeared  in  no  way  to  be  related  to  her.  She 
shook  her  dangling  earrings  rather  saucily  at  him,  but  finally 
concluded  not  to  part  so  easily  with  her  jewels.  At  last  a 
sufficient  number  of  silver  pieces  seemed  to  satisfy  even  the 
man,  and  the  Commander  walked  away  with  his  coveted 
jewellery.  Upon  looking  back  he  saw  the  interfering  native 
trying  to  snatch  away  the  money  from  the  woman  who  was 
resisting  him  with  all  her  might,  while  the  brown  baby  was 
screaming  with  fright.  The  Commander  made  a  dash  back 
and  raised  the  whip,  which,  without  thinking,  he  had  brought 
from  the  car. 

' '  You  scoundrel ! ' '  he  exclaimed.  *  *  Leave  that  woman 
alone  and  get  out  of  here !  ' ' 

The  man,  looking  very  ugly,  slunk  away,  while  their 
friendly  native  smiled  with  apparent  satisfaction.  But  this 
smile  turned  to  melancholy  when  they  reached  the  car  and 
he  saw  that  the  time  had  come  to  part  forever  from  his  new- 
found friends. 

And  so  they  were  off  again  ' '  to  pastures  new. '  *  They 
passed  more  interesting  nomad  life  and  more  curious  equip- 
ments. Once  they  came  up  to  a  huge  bunch  of  brush  ap- 
parently moving  along  the  road  at  its  own  volition.  As  they 
passed  it,  they  saw  it  was  a  cart  piled  high  with  branches  and 
hitched  to  a  moth-eaten  camel,  who  was  raising  his  scornful 
head  in  protestation,  apparently,  at  such  an  indignity,  while 
a  merry  native  clad  only  in  a  thin  cotton  garment  with  a 
brown  gandoura,  sat  on  the  camel,  kicking  the  poor  beast  into 
subjection.  They  passed  many  wells  with  fascinating  groups 
around  them;  then  a  long  caravan  of  camels  piled  high  with 
merchandise;  again  a  moving  nomad  family, —  three  or  four 
camels  heaped  with  pots,  kettles,  and  rugs,  women,  children, 
and  dogs  following. 

[3961 


MARKET  DAY  AT  MEDENINE 


« ,1  .#) 


HOUSES  AT  MEDENINE 


TROGLODYTE  VILLAGE  OF  MATMATA: 
ENTRANCE  TO  EXCAVATED  DWELLING 


jJoLES'  6P:fiNIN^(i  tl^^O  ROOMS  FROM  THE  WELL  OF  A 
SUBTERRANEAN  DWELLING  OF  THE  TROGLO- 
DYTE VILLAGE  OF  MATMATA 


A  TRIP   TO   MEDENINE 

As  they  again  approached  Gabes  the  Commander  ordered 
Adrian  to  pull  up  near  a  group  of  palm-trees  and  then  looked 
back  with  a  twinkle  in  his  eye,  as  he  ordered  the  pretty 
Marguerite  to  take  out  a  basket  concealed  under  the  bag- 
gage. Turning  to  the  Other-one  he  exclaimed,  *'  Here  is  our 
luncheon.  I  knew  you  did  not  enjoy  that  inn  nor  find  the 
company  of  the  fat  landlord  to  your  taste,  when  we  landed 
at  Gabes  yesterday,  on  our  downward  trip.'* 

Out  of  the  package  came  slices  of  cold  meat,  boiled  eggs,  a 
roll  of  dark  bread,  and  a  bottle  of  the  wine  of  the  country, 
with  some  dried  figs  and  Italian  cheese,  which  made  a  very 
good  meal  indeed,  eaten  under  the  shadow  of  the  palms  with 
the  Desert  stretching  away  in  shades  of  gray  and  yellow  and 
sage  green;  and  here,  too,  were  peace  and  cleanliness,  which 
was  best  of  all. 

They  ran  into  Gabes  to  give  the  motor  a  meal  of  gasoline, 
then  out  again  to  go  off  on  the  country  road  toward  the  misty 
blue  mountains  of  Matmata  and  to  a  more  mysterious  country 
of  troglodytes  than  they  had  yet  seen. 

**  Do  you  know  much  about  this  village  or  these  people  we 
are  going  to  see?  **  asked  the  Other-one,  as  they  bumped  along 
over  the  rutty  and  sandy  road.  *  *  I  certainly  have  read  noth- 
ing about  them.  I  presume  the  town  is  much  like  that  of 
Medenine.'* 

**  No,*'  answered  the  Commander,  **I  have  heard  only  that 
the  people  are  the  true  troglodytes  and  live  in  caves  or  holes 
in  the  high  crags  of  the  mountains.  So  the  village  cannot  be 
like  Medenine.'* 

As  they  went  on,  the  road  ascended  more  and  more,  and 
the  country  became  more  barren.  Great  ridges  of  rock  thrust 
themselves  out  from  the  hillside,  and  all  vestiges  of  green  dis- 
appeared. Nothing  could  be  wilder  or  more  desolate,  unless, 
indeed,  the  country  of  the  Mozabites.  As  they  drew  nearer 
to  the  mountains,  however,  there  came  in  sight,  now  and 
then,  a  fig-tree  or  two  or  three  olives  or  palms.  Nearer,  the 
travellers  saw  these  grew  on  small  terraces,  edged  all  around 
with  clay  and  rocks,  forming  dykes,  so  as  to  hold  any  rainfall. 

[397  1 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

Sometimes  there  was  a  small  bed  of  lentils  and  some  maize. 
At  forty-five  kilometres  from  Gabes  the  road  came  out  on  a 
sort  of  terrace  with  an  amphitheatre  of  hills  around  it,  and  a 
valley  below  full  of  low  mounds.  Palm-trees  grew  here  and 
there,  and  great  clumps  of  prickly  pear  stood  at  the  foot  of 
many  of  the  mounds.  There  was  a  small  rude  mosque  with  a 
clumsy  minaret  below  the  terrace  at  some  distance,  and  there 
were  a  few  curious-looking  constructions  that  seemed  like 
entrances  to  cellars.  The  only  other  building  in  sight  was 
a  small  rough  stone  house,  the  office  of  the  Bureau  des  Affaires 
Indigenes,  or  what  seemed  to  be  that,  and  a  Frenchman  in 
working  clothes  looked  out  from  there  at  the  unusual  sight, 
of  a  motor. 

*  *  We  must  learn  where  Matmata  is,  though  we  have  come 
far  enough  to  find  it  at  this  point;  but  there  is  no  village 
here,  and  no  high  cliffs  with  caves  in  them.  Ask  the  man, 
Adrian,  how  much  farther  it  is;  if  too  far  we  must  turn 
back.    We  have  to  reach  Sfax  to-night,  without  fail.'* 

The  Frenchman  informed  them  that  this  was  Matmata. 

* '  Matmata !  *  *  cried  the  Other-one.  '  *  But  where  are  the 
caves?    There  is  nothing  here  but  mounds!  '' 

The  Frenchman,  who  was  rather  sulky,  said :  *  *  If  you 
want  to  see  the  houses  you  must  get  permission  of  the  Kaid 
of  the  village,  and  he  speaks  only  Arabic.** 

*  *  Well !  *  *  cried  the  Other-one,  * '  this  is  a  pretty  state  of 
affairs !  Here  we  have  come  over  a  long  rough  road  to  see  a 
wonderful  village,  and  we  find  nothing  but  a  few  mounds  and 
an  ugly  mosque ;  besides,  our  Arabic  is  rusty !  *  * 

The  Commander  w^as  much  vexed.  *'  There  is  nothing  to 
do  but  retrace  our  steps  to  Gabes  and  get  on  to  Sfax  for  the 
night.    How  could  I  have  been  so  deceived  about  this?  '* 

* '  Let  us  walk  down  to  the  mosque,  at  any  rate,  and  look 
around  a  little,**  said  the  Other-one. 

They  left  the  car  and  strolled  down  the  hill.  Passing  one 
of  the  mounds  the  Commander  was  minded  to  climb  up  to 
see  what  there  might  be  on  top.  He  had  hardly  reached  this 
when  he  shouted  to  the  Other-one  who  had  remained  below. 

[398] 


A  TRIP   TO  MEDENINE 

*'  Come  quickly!     Here  they  are  —  the  real  troglodytes!  " 

The  Other-one  made  haste  to  climb  up  and  found  the  Com- 
mander looking  down  into  a  deep  well  fifty  to  seventy  feet 
wide  and  something  like  thirty  feet  deep,  excavated  into  the 
heart  of  the  hill,  with  two  stories  of  high  arched  holes  cut 
into  the  sides  of  the  wall.  At  the  bottom,  sitting  down  on  the 
ground  in  front  of  one  of  the  holes,  was  a  rather  pretty 
woman,  with  necklaces,  bracelets,  and  anklets  on  her  brown 
neck,  arms,  and  ankles,  and  her  blue  gown  caught  up  with 
huge  fibulae.  She  seemed  in  no  way  surprised  at  the  people 
peering  down  on  her,  but  beckoned  them  to  come  down,  in  a 
most  friendly  way. 

**  How  does  she  expect  us  to  get  down!'*  exclaimed  the 
Other-one.  *  *  We  can  *t  climb  down  —  we  are  not  nimble 
enough, —  and  if  we  fall  headlong,  the  result  may  be  as  disas- 
trous to  her  as  to  us.  If  she  wants  us  to  come  to  afternoon 
tea,  she  must  provide  a  long  and  safe  ladder.*' 

*  *  There  must  be  a  way ! ' '  said  the  Commander  eagerly. 
**  Do  you  see  that  jewellery?  I  have  an  idea!  I  am  going  to 
investigate, ' '  and  he  plunged  down  the  outside  of  the  mound. 

The  Other-one  descended  more  slowly  and  found  the  Com- 
mander standing  with  a  delighted  countenance  before  one  of 
those  curiously  built  up  rocky  arches  they  had  seen. 

**  Here  it  is!"  he  exclaimed,  **  follow  me."  And  they 
entered  a  long  gallery  cut  in  the  earth  and  came  out  at  the 
bottom  of  the  well  into  the  open  court. 

The  woman  received  them  in  so  dignified  a  way  that  the 
Commander  decided  to  wait  before  trying  to  bargain  for  her 
necklace.  She  seemed  anxious  about  something,  and  muttered 
some  words  in  a  queer  language.  They  did  not  know  what 
she  could  possibly  want,  but  her  face  lighted  up  as  a  native 
came  into  the  court  and  she  addressed  herself  to  him.  Fortu- 
nately he  had  a  few  words  of  French  and  the  Other-one  made 
out  to  understand  that  they  must  go  to  the  Kaid  and  get 
permission  to  visit  his  house  as  well  as  others.  The  woman 
now  seemed  relieved,  but  she  refused,  with  great  dignity,  the 
two- franc  pieces  the  Commander  tried  to  place  in  her  hand; 

[  399  ]     • 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

so  he  was  glad  to  think  he  had  not  asked  her  to  sell  her 
jewellery. 

Arriving  at  the  entrance  to  the  Raid's  house,  a  venerable 
native  wrapped  in  a  fine  white  woollen  burnous  and  a  snowy 
turban  greeted  them  in  a  most  courtly  way,  after  the  guide 
had  explained  what  was  needed.  With  a  royal  air  he  led  the 
way  himself  to  his  dwelling  first  through  a  long  dark  tunnel 
at  one  side  of  which,  part  way  in,  a  white-faced  donkey  thrust 
his  head  out  in  a  most  startling  manner  from  his  stable, 
which  was  excavated  in  the  earth.  The  old  Kaid  shouted  for 
something,  probably  for  lights,  but  no  one  came,  and  the 
party  went  on  into  the  court,  which  was  bright  with  the  light 
from  above.  Here  were  men,  women,  and  many  children,  and 
the  women  were  unveiled  —  nor  did  they  make  any  attempt 
to  veil  their  faces  when  they  saw  the  Commander.  There 
were  several  arched  holes  in  the  wall  around,  some  shut  up 
with  rude  wooden  doors.  The  Kaid  stopped  at  the  largest  of 
these,  near  which  an  exceedingly  pretty  young  girl  was  stand- 
ing, much  decorated  with  silver  jewellery. 

**  She  must  be  his  latest  acquisition  in  wives,"  exclaimed 
the  Other-one. 

The  Kaid  entered  the  vaulted  hole  followed  by  the  pretty 
girl  and  our  travellers,  who  were  astonished  to  find  them- 
selves in  a  large  room,  amazing,  certainly;  not  only  in  its 
cleanliness,  but  in  its  decorations ;  for  at  one  end  of  it,  high 
on  the  wall,  were  hung  many  curious  plates  of  glazed  and  un- 
glazed  pottery  with  crude  decorations  in  color;  also,  strange 
to  say,  a  gaudy  poster  and  a  French  clock,  probably  gifts  to 
the  Kaid,  who  had  thus  adorned  his  apartment  with  them. 
There  was  also  another  strange  thing  in  the  room  near  the  en- 
trance —  a  high,  rude  sort  of  bed,  an  unusual  piece  of  furni- 
ture in  the  native  huts,  and  only  to  be  seen  in  the  houses  of 
rich  Arabs  or  Moors.  This  was  like  a  high  platform,  with  four 
curious  pieces  of  whitewashed  wood  supporting  it,  in  lieu  of 
legs.  Over  it  were  thrown  many  gay  blankets  of  native 
weave. 

Ranged  round  the  room  were  several  great  jars  of  unglazed 

[  400  ] 


A  WOMAN  OF  MATMATA 


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^^■r:^ 

.*        • '  ■■*■ 

LITTLK   CIIILDHKN   IN   THE   WKLL  OF   A   SUHTERliANEAN 
DWELLING  AT  MATMATA 


A  STRAW  HAT;  WORN  ON  THE  DESERT 
IN  SUMMER 


PLOUGHING  WITH  CAMELS 


A   TRIP    TO   MEDENIXE 

pottery,  probably  to  hold  grain  and  lentils.  A  long  line  hung 
at  one  end  of  the  room,  over  which  hung  the  family  wardrobe 
consisting  of  burnouses  in  various  colors  and  some  long  white 
garments.  On  another  side  of  the  room  was  a  most  curious 
construction  of  terra  cotta  and  rusty  iron,  like  a  great  crude 
castle.  The  Two  concluded  it  must  be  a  lamp,  for  there  were 
some  dry  shreds  of  wick  adhering  to  the  side  of  one  compart- 
ment of  it.  No  light  or  air  came  in  anywhere  that  the  travel- 
lers could  see,  except  from  the  open  door,  and  they  were  glad 
to  get  out  into  the  fresh  air  of  the  court.  They  looked  into 
another  hole,  which  evidently  was  the  kitchen,  for  here  in  the 
middle  of  the  small  room  were  the  remains  of  a  fire  under 
some  blackened  stones,  and  there  were  also  blackened  pots  and 
pans  scattered  around. 

The  Other-one  pointed  to  a  perforated  dish  and  said  ^^cous- 
coiis.^^  The  Kaid  smiled,  much  pleased,  and  nodded  his  head 
several  times.  There  were  more  holes,  but  the  Kaid  did  not 
offer  to  show  them.  A  group  of  children,  of  all  ages,  and  all 
degrees  of  nudity,  stood  near  the  middle  of  the  court,  staring 
curiously  at  the  straiTgers.  The  Other-one  was  most  happy 
to  be  allowed  to  "snap'*  them.  Then  the  old  Kaid,  evi- 
dently considering  that  he  had  done  all  expected  of  him, 
waved  them,  in  a  lordly  manner,  out  of  his  palace. 

'*  Shall  I  give  him  a  fee?  '*  asked  the  Commander. 

* '  Not  on  your  life !  He  would  be  terribly  insulted.  It  is 
better  to  give  a  good  fee  to  the  guide,  and  the  Kaid  will 
probably  wring  it  out  of  him  without  injury  to  his  own  feel- 
ings—  but  we  must  not  know  it.'* 

As  the  time  was  growing  short  and  they  had  to  make  Sfax 
for  the  night,  the  Commander  thought  there  was  no  need  to 
\  isit  any  more  mounds.  **  They  are  all  on  the  same  plan, 
and  of  course  the  Kaid's  house  is  the  finest  of  all.  The  rest 
won't  have  beds,  surely." 

The  native  seemed  anxious  for  them  to  move  on,  and  he 

piloted  them  into  another  long  gallery,  whence  they  came  out 

into  another  well  or  courtyard,  where  various  domestic  oper- 

tions  were  going  on; — a  man  was  having  his  head  shaved, 

[401] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

two  or  three  old  women  were  preparing  cous-cous,  some  cook- 
ing it  over  charcoal  fires,  others  rolling  the  grain  on  a  flat 
stone.  At  an  open  door  stood  a  prettier  young  woman,  if 
possible,  than  the  one  at  the  Kaid's.  She  conferred  with  the 
guide  a  moment,  then  proudly  let  them  into  her  room,  she 
being  evidently  a  bride.  This  room  was  even  more  surpris- 
ing than  the  other  —  larger,  higher,  and,  if  possible,  cleaner. 
Many  plaques  hung  high  at  the  end  of  the  room,  and  great 
grain  jars  were  standing  round  also.  The  bed  was  even  more 
gorgeous  than  the  Kaid's,  and  its  curious  legs  were  cut  in 
scallops  and  gilded  as  well  as  whitewashed.  The  blankets 
were  finer  and  gayer  and,  moreover,  from  a  rope  above  hung 
a  white  curtain. 

' '  It  is  most  surprising !  ' '  exclaimed  the  Other-one.  *  *  And 
what  an  engaging  and  unembarrassed  young  creature  this  girl 
is !  One  would  think  she  had  visitors  from  abroad  every  day, 
yet  I  doubt  much  if  people  come  here.  It  is  such  an 
out-of-the-way  place  and  seems  to  be  so  little  known. ' ' 

From  here  the  native  took  them  to  see  a  school  of  boys  in 
a  cave,  or  well,  a  curious  sight  indeed  —  many  bright-eyed 
little  fellows  squatting  around  on  the  ground  who  could  be 
heard  repeating  verses  from  the  Koran  as  the  travellers 
entered,  but  who  suddenly  stopped  as  they  saw  the  strangers. 
The  imam  —  a  wild-eyed  man  in  an  exceedingly  dirty  bur- 
nous and  having  a  discolored  rag  around  his  green  turban, — 
welcomed  them  as  if  they  were  true  Moslems.  He  rose  and 
made  haste  to  take  out  of  a  hole  in  the  wall  a  tattered  Koran, 
which  he  showed  them  with  eagerness;  but  although  it  was 
written  in  fine  Arabic  characters  on  parchment,  the  Com- 
mander could  not  discover  that  it  had  any  special  value  as 
far  as  workmanship  was  concerned.  ' '  But  it  must  have  some 
history,  though  we  cannot  find  out  what  it  is,"  he  admitted. 
**  What  a  place  for  a  school  —  down  in  a  well!  Little  light 
and  less  air!  ** 

After  having  bestowed  some  francs  upon  the  imam,  a  gift 
he  received  with  much  satisfaction,  the  travellers  hastened 
away  up  the  steep  path  to  the  place  where  the  car  awaited 

[  402  ] 


A  TRIP   TO  MEDENINE 

them.  They  turned  to  look  back.  The  village  had  faded 
away  as  if  by  magic.  There  were  only  yellow  mounds  with 
dark  depressions  just  visible  in  the  centre. 

**  Well,  of  all  the  curious  villages  I  ever  saw,  and  of  all  the 
friendly  people,  these  certainly  have  the  palm!  "  exclaimed 
the  Other-one,  as  they  went  away. 

"There  are  other  villages  of  troglodytes  not  far  away,*' 
remarked  the  Commander,  *  *  real  cave  dwellers  in  mountain 
cliffs,  but  inaccessible  to  us  with  an  automobile.  All  these 
people  are  descendants  of  that  ancient  people,  the  Berbers, 
and  they  are  as  good  agriculturists  as  architects  —  for  we  see 
by  all  these  terraces  prepared  with  immense  labor  how  much 
they  have  gotten  out  of  this  barren  soil  to  which  the  Arab 
invaders  have  driven  them.** 

As  they  rolled  down  from  the  mountains  over  the  rough 
road,  they  saw  some  small  brilliant  birds  of  blue,  green,  and 
soft  brown  plumage,  fly  across  the  valley.  They  were  like 
fragments  of  the  rainbow,  drifting  through  the  air,  and  they 
lighted  up  the  barren  places. 

**  I  know  what  they  are,**  said  the  Other-one.  **I  saw  some 
the  other  day  —  they  tell  me  they  are  called  after  those  gay 
French  soldiers,  the  Chasseurs  d^Afrique.^* 

It  was  late  that  night  when  the  weary  Motorists  arrived  in 
Sfax,  and  as  the  Other-one  went  into  her  dark,  untidy  little 
chamber,  she  sighed,  **  I  wish  the  landlady  of  this  hotel  would 
go  to  visit  for  a  day  or  so  with  the  troglodyte  Matmatas  and 
take  some  lessons  of  them  in  cleanliness !  *  * 


[403] 


CHAPTER  XXIV 

BACK    TO   SOUSSE   BY    MEHDIA    AND    MONASTIR;    WITH   A   DAY   AT 
KAIROUAN  AND   RETURN  TO   TUNIS 

THE  early  morning  saw  the  Motorists  on  the  road  again 
and  taking  a  new  route  back  to  Sousse  in  order  to  pass 
by,  or  through  Mehdia,  the  ancient  Zella,  for  which  city 
Hannibal  embarked  after  his  flight  from  Carthage.  It  is  a 
hundred  and  six  kilometres  from  Sousse.  There  is  also  a  road 
turning  off  from  this  for  Monastir,  which  the  Commander 
wished  to  see.  The  way  lay  near  the  sea  and  through  hun- 
dreds of  olive  orchards  of  countless  trees,  stretching  away  to 
the  horizon  line  —  trees  from  the  tiny  sapling  to  the  hoary 
old  ones,  growths  of  centuries.  The  travellers  could  not  con- 
tain their  amazement  as  the  car  rolled  past  these  never-ending 
orchards. 

They  now  ran  down  by  the  sea,  and  there  were  some  kilo- 
metres of  bad  road  across  a  flat  country  made  worse  by  the 
rain  of  the  night  before.  The  atmosphere,  however,  was  of 
the  most  crystal  clearness,  washed  of  all  dust;  and  the  sky 
was  of  that  vivid,  translucent  blue  which  no  country  but 
Africa  can  show  of  such  depth  and  richness ;  the  sea,  too,  was 
dazzling  in  its  wonderful  color. 

As  the  car  drew  near  to  the  ancient  town  of  Mehdia  the 
travellers  could  see  the  crenellated  walls  and  the  white  houses 
running  out  on  a  long  promontory.  Entering  they  went  up 
the  street  and  stopped  before  a  huge,  fortress-like  structure 
with  square  towers  that  took  one  back  to  mediaeval  times. 
Everything  else  around  was  dazzlingly  white,  except  this  gray, 
old,  double-towered  gateway,  which  stood  up  as  if  to  bar  the 
way  into  the  old  town.  A  curious  crowd,  composed  mostly  of 
natives,  at  once  surrounded  the  car,  and  it  was  with  difficulty 
that  Adrian  got  it  away  without  injuring  any  of  them,  for 

[404] 


BACK  TO    SOUSSE 

they  stuck  like  burrs  and  could  scarcely  be  driven  away  from 
the  unusual  sight. 

As  it  was  high  noon  the  Commander  proposed  lunch  before 
going  out  to  see  what  little  the  town  had  to  offer.  With  much 
exertion  and  many  inquiries  a  small  inn  was  found  with  the 
inviting  name  Hotel  des  Palmes,  situated  in  a  small  garden 
where  three  or  four  dusty  palm-trees  kept  watch  over  it.  A 
fat  Spanish  woman  and  an  overworked  maid  were  endeavor- 
ing to  pacify  the  clamors  of  five  or  six  roistering  soldiers  in 
the  small  and  not  too  clean  dining-room.  The  military,  of 
course,  had  to  be  satisfied  first;  so,  to  beguile  the  time,  the 
Other-one  related  to  the  rather  impatient  Commander,  what 
she  had  picked  up  about  Mehdia. 

**  It  seems  this  was  once  a  very  important  Phoenician  town, 
and  also,  in  Roman  times,  even  more  important  commercially, 
but  when  Caesar  gained  his  victory  over  Pompey  and  Juba  at 
Thapsus  —  ruins  of  which  are  not  far  from  here  —  this  city 
was  deserted.  It  was  rebuilt  by  El  Mahdi,  from  whom  it 
derived  its  name.  It  was  fortified  in  the  tenth  century,  and 
was  for  some  time  the  seaport  of  Kairouan.  It  is  the  Africa 
of  the  historians  of  the  Middle  Ages.  The  Normans  occupied 
it  in  the  twelfth  century;  then  the  Arabs  reconquered  it  in 
the  eighteenth  century.  The  Spaniards  took  it  after  a  long 
siege  and  destroyed  the  fortifications  and  everything  else 
they  could. 

'*  It  is  certainly  a  strange  and  curious  town,  with  a  flavor 
of  mediaevalism  in  spite  of  its  dazzling  whiteness.  I  suppose 
it  is  that  hoary  old  construction,  half  gateway,  half  fortress, 
we  saw  coming  in,  which  dominates  everything  else  in  the 
town.  It  was  once  the  chateau-fortress  for  defence  on  the 
land  side;  now,  I  believe,  it  serves  for  a  prison.  This  town 
has  a  remarkable  situation,  which  explains  its  historic  role. 
It  is  almost  a  rocky  island,  very  long  and  wide,  running  out 
into  the  sea.'' 

The  fat  Spanish  landlady  now  labored  in,  breathing  heav- 
ily, bearing  a  platter  containing  a  broiled  sea-fish  reposing 
on  a  bed  of  stewed  red-peppers,  which  vshe  placed  before  the 

[  405  ] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

Commander.    He  and  the  Lady  fell  to,  and  forgot  for  a  while 
the  history  of  the  ancient  town. 

The  repast  ended,  they  secured  the  services  of  a  lank  youth 
who  was  lounging  outside  the  inn  —  and  whose  French  was 
serviceable  if  not  elegant  —  to  conduct  them  down  through 
the  old  fortress  gates  and  into  the  Arab  town.  A  rough  path 
led  out  on  the  eastern  promontory  to  the  sea,  where,  the  youth 
said,  were  Roman  ruins.  They  walked  along  under  the  walls 
of  the  picturesque  old  Spanish  fortress  which  looked  white 
and  sleepy  this  hot  afternoon.  There  is  a  marabout's  tomb 
near  it  and  a  dilapidated  Arab  cemetery  tumbling  down  the 
hill  to  the  sea.  Along  the  shore  are  rugged  masses  of  old 
Roman  constructions.  There  was  once  here  a  small  cothon, 
or  harbor,  and  there  are  traces  of  a  canal  opening  from  it  to 
the  sea.  The  guide  said  that  some  distance  down  on  the 
shore  there  was  a  Punic  cemetery. 

*  *  Are  there  any  sarcophagi  in  it  ?  '  *  asked  the  Commander. 
**  No,"  answered  the  guide,  '*  nothing  but  the  holes  —  the 

sea  must  have  washed  everything  away.*' 

*  *  Very  well, ' '  returned  the  Commander  to  the  Other-one, 
**  as  you  enjoy  visiting  cemeteries,  you  may  go,  while  I  re- 
pose in  the  shade  under  the  walls  of  the  old  fortress.  * ' 

So  the  Other-one,  goaded  on  by  her  conscience,  walked  on 
in  the  hot  sun,  following  the  youth  down  a  rough  path, 
past  another  ancient,  gone-to-seed,  Arab  cemetery.  Near 
one  of  the  less  dilapidated  graves  an  elderly  Moslem  sat 
rocking  back  and  forth,  repeating  in  a  sing-song  tone 
some  phrases  which  the  guide  said  were  from  the  Koran. 
The  Punic  cemetery  proved  to  be  composed  of  oblong  cavities 
cut  in  the  rocks,  close  together,  and  by  hundreds,  on  the  sea- 
shore. The  Other-one  wondered  how  any  bodies  could  ever 
have  remained  in  them,  as  the  sea  broke  over  them  constantly, 
and  the  cavities  were  full  of  water.  Hot  and  weary,  she  toiled 
back  up  the  rugged  path  to  where  the  Commander  sat,  serene 
and  cool,  in  the  shade  of  the  fortress  walls,  enjoying  the  glo- 
rious view  of  the  shining  sea. 

The  car  soon  left  the  ancient  Zella,  and  they  were  on  the 

[  406  ] 


BACK  TO    SOUSSE 

road  again,  passing  more  groves  of  olives  and  fields  of  waving 
barley  lighted  up  by  the  vivid  glow  of  masses  of  crimson  pop- 
pies. At  some  kilometres  beyond  Mehdia,  they  passed  the 
small  Arab  village  of  Bekalta,  about  five  kilometres  from 
which,  on  the  shore,  are  the  ruins  of  the  ancient  Thapsus  — 
now  Ras  Dimas  —  where  Caesar  had  battle  with  the  king, 
Juba,  and  the  generals  of  Pompey.  There  is  nothing  but  a 
bad  country  road  leading  to  it,  so  the  Motorists  decided  not 
to  try  to  see  these  ruins,  but  went  on,  passing  the  Sebka 
of  Moknine  and  going  past  the  town  of  this  name.  Here  are 
Jewish  workers  in  silver  and  gold  who  fashion,  even  today, 
jewellery  which  preserves  the  old  Byzantine  style.  When  the 
car  came  near  Monastir,  they  saw  its  white  houses  shining 
in  the  afternoon  sun,  the  kasba  with  its  towers,  dominating 
all.  It  was  the  ancient  Ruspina,  and  owes  its  present  name 
to  a  great  monastery  once  built  there,  which  the  Arabs  turned 
into  a  sort  of  fortress.  The  Commander  directed  the  chauf- 
feur to  take  the  road  to  the  right,  under  the  walls  which  run 
down  to  the  sea  shore.  From  above,  a  most  picturesque  view 
is  obtained  of  their  high,  crenellated  tops,  with  the  kasba, 
the  high,  white  round  tower  (the  Nador)  and  the  bastions 
running  out  nearly  to  the  sea.  From  here  also  can  be  seen, 
at  a  little  distance  from  the  shore,  three  small  islands,  on 
one  of  which  there  are  ancient  cisterns,  cut  in  the  rock,  and 
also  many  artificial  grottos.  On  another  are  large  buildings 
for  preserving  the  tunny-fish,  many  of  which  are  taken  near 
here  and  provide  a  large  industry  for  the  town. 

Returning  to  the  picturesque  old  gate,  the  Two  descended 
and  went  in  under  its  portals  to  wander  a  while  up  and  down 
the  quaint  Rue  Sadi-Carnot,  through  which  an  interesting 
Oriental  crowd  was  flowing,  composed  of  all  the  fascinating 
elements  one  finds  in  these  Tunisian  villages.  There  are  some 
exquisite  minarets  here  —  square,  with  the  fanciful  Arabic 
brickwork  adorning  them,  and  it  is  distinctly  an  Arabic  town. 

It  was  late  when  the  travellers  arrived  at  the  clean  little 
hotel  at  Sousse.  The  jolly  Mohamed  was  on  the  lookout  and 
greeted  them  as  if  they  were  very  dear  friends  returned  from 

[407] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

a  long  and  dangerous  journey.  He  whispered  to  the  Lady  that 
it  was  most  sad  she  could  not  have  been  present  at  a  very 
grand  Arab  wedding  which  had  taken  place  a  few  days  before, 
but  there  was  still  the  wedding  reception,  when  the  bride 
would  receive  any  who  wished  to  come, —  *'  not  Monsieur, 
certainly  not !  ' ' 

But  '  *  Madame  ' '  was  too  weary  that  night  for  wedding 
receptions,  even  an  Oriental  one,  and  went  to  her  charming 
little  room  in  quite  the  nicest  little  hotel  in  all  North  Africa, 
rejoicing  in  its  cleanliness  and  comfort. 

Mohamed  was  ready  at  the  door  the  next  morning  when 
the  Two  came  down  to  sally  forth  for  an  inspection  of 
modern  Sousse  and  what  remained  of  the  ancient  Hadra- 
mentum.  Again  he  whispered  to  the  Lady  concerning  the 
wedding  reception. 

*'  My  wife  will  be  overjoyed  to  conduct  Madame  there  this 
afternoon,  but  Monsieur  —  it  is  a  great  pity — cannot  enter 
where  the  ladies  are." 

As  the  Other-one  had  not,  as  yet,  seen  an  Arab  function, 
she  decided  she  would  accept  the  invitation  and  the  thought 
that  the  Commander  was  debarred  from  this  gave  zest  to  her 
decision;  for  she  remembered  the  times  when  she  had  been 
shut  out  from  visits  to  certain  monasteries,  and  the  lively 
satisfaction  he  had  evinced  as  he  went  away  with  a  guide, 
leaving  her  behind! 

Sousse  is  interesting  for  its  association  with  the  history 
of  the  Carthaginian  hero,  Hannibal,  being  the  place  which 
he  made  the  base  of  his  supplies  during  the  Second  Punic 
War,  but  there  are  few  remains  of  the  ancient  city. 

' '  What  are  we  to  see  ?  ' '  asked  the  Commander.  *  *  What 
are  the  most  important  things?  " 

The  guide  answered  that  they  must  see  the  museum,  the 
kasba,  and  the  soiiks. 

*'  To  the  museum,  first,  by  all  means,''  said  the  Com- 
mander. * '  As  to  the  souks,  we  have  seen  them  in  other  towns, 
and  I  imagine  they  are  pretty  much  the  same  in  all  these 
Tunisian  places ;  but  we  can  take  a  stroll  through  them. ' ' 

r  408  1 


BACK   TO    SOUSSE 

As  they  walked  on  down  the  street  the  Other-one  said, 
''  Concerning  Sousse,  I  have  gathered  from  my  '  Joanne  * 
that  it  was  an  important  town  when  Carthage  was  in  full 
glory ;  and  when  that  city  fell,  it  was  spared  by  the  Romans. 
During  the  Empire  it  attained  a  high  degree  of  prosperity 
and  was  a  city  of  great  luxury,  with  public  and  private 
monuments  and  baths.  These  were  decorated  with  the  most 
beautiful  mosaics,  some  of  which  are  in  this  museum,  but 
many  have  been  taken  to  the  Alaoui  Museum  at  Tunis.  Nearly 
everything  else  has  disappeared  but  a  few  stones.  The  French 
occupied  it  without  resistance  in  1881.  What  will  interest 
you  much  is  that  the  new  part  has  great  facilities  for  shipping 
and  exporting.  Now,  as  in  the  time  of  the  Romans,  vast 
quantities  of  olives  are  grown,  and  the  country  around  is 
rich  in  fruits,  such  as  apricots,  oranges,  and  almonds.  The 
animal  industry  is  now  a  great  source  of  wealth  and  pros- 
perity. There  are,  if  I  remember  rightly,  about  sixteen  thou- 
sand cattle,  nineteen  thousand  camels,  twenty  thousand  goats, 
one  hundred  and  twenty  thousand  sheep,  and  many  horses, 
mules,  and  donkeys  raised  in  the  environs.** 

The  Two  had  now  arrived  at  the  museum,  where  a  serious 
French  guardian  took  charge  of  them  and  showed  that  he 
was  much  in  touch  with  the  work  of  the  Service  des  Antiq- 
uites.  In  one  long  room  are  arranged  around  the  walls  and 
in  cases,  fragments  of  sculpture,  some  busts  in  good  preserva- 
tion, wine-jars,  tear-bottles,  lamps  of  every  known  Roman 
tjrpe,  iridescent  glass,  and  all  the  other  interesting  things 
that  are  generally  found  in  excavating  an  ancient  Roman 
town. 

The  gems  of  the  little  museum,  however,  are  the  mo- 
saics on  the  walls  and  in  the  centre  of  the  room  on  a  raised 
platform.  One  represents  Neptune  with  his  trident,  driv- 
ing his  sea-horse.  It  is  very  spirited,  and  the  color  is  fine. 
There  is  another  showing  a  gladiator  in  a  chariot,  with  a 
dancing-girl  in  flying  draperies  going  before,  touching  the 
tambourine.  This  mosaic  has  a  beautiful  border  of  leaves 
and  birds,  extremely  interesting,  well  drawn,  and  of  good 

[409] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

color.  Another  shows  a  lake  full  of  all  kinds  of  fish,  and 
men  in  small  boats  spearing  them. 

The  travellers  did  not  care  to  linger  long  in  this  place,  and 
the  guide  was  only  too  happy  to  go  off  with  them  to  the  souks. 
He  took  them  through  a  large  breach  that  had  been  made  in 
the  walls  into  the  narrow,  crooked,  and  dirty  streets  of  the 
native  town,  and  they  found  themselves  near  the  Great 
Mosque,  which  dates  from  the  ninth  century  and  has  columns 
reaching  up  to  the  ceiling  without  any  arches.  Close  by  is 
the  souk  of  stuffs  in  which  were  all  those  fascinating  Oriental 
cloths,  spangled  gauzes,  embroideries,  and  silks  of  soft  color- 
ings. The  Commander  skilfully  piloted  the  Other-one  through 
this  tangle  which  called  to  her  and  where  she  fain  would 
have  lingered.  There  was  an  animated  crowd  surging  through 
the  souks,  past  which,  however,  the  jolly  Mohamed  got 
them  at  length,  though  he  would  have  stopped  to  let  them  pur- 
chase of  some  of  his  friends  who  called  softly  to  him. 

When  out  of  the  tangles  of  gay  color,  they  found  the  car 
where  Adrian  had  been  directed  to  meet  them.  Then  they 
rode  up  to  the  kasba,  which  is  high  on  a  hill  above  the 
Oriental  town,  and  is  an  angular,  grim,  but  imposingly  pic- 
turesque, irregular  pile  of  buildings  with  the  great  crenel- 
lated walls  running  down  the  hill  from  it.  The  entrance  is 
under  the  great  gate,  which  is  double  and  has  pictures 
painted  on  it.  The  soldier  who  greeted  them  took  them  at 
once  to  what  he  seemed  to  consider  the  only  part  worthy  their 
notice,  the  Salle  d'Honneur  of  the  Fourth  Tirailleurs.  Here 
are  some  of  the  antique  objects  found  in  the  excavations,  and 
an  especially  curious  large  mosaic  on  the  wall  which  evidently 
represents  some  favorite  horses  that  have  won  in  chariot  races. 
Each  one  has  his  name  inscribed  in  mosaic  near  him.  Other 
smaller  mosaics  are  interesting.  In  one  a  panther,  used  for 
fishing,  is  springing  out  of  a  weir,  showing  one  of  the  sports 
of  the  Romans. 

This  room,  high  up  in  the  kasba,  has  a  superb  view  from 
the  windows.  One  looks  down  over  the  marble-white  city  of 
Sousse  —  with  its  flat  roofs  fringed  with  green  of  palm  and 

[410] 


BACK  TO    SOUSSE 

pepper  trees, —  to  the  dazzling  blue  of  the  sea.  From  this 
eagle's  nest  the  guide  led  the  party  to  see  the  curious  gate, 
the  Gate  of  the  Bey.  It  has  the  stilted  arch  below  another 
round  double  one,  and  is  constructed  with  the  courses  of 
black  and  white  marble  so  esteemed  by  Oriental  architects. 
Under  the  upper  one,  in  a  triangle,  is  the  star-and-crescent. 

As  the  party  came  out  of  the  great  gate,  the  guide  said, 
"  Now  Monsieur  and  Madame  will  wish  to  see  the  Christian 
catacombs  not  far  outside  the  walls.** 

But  as  Monsieur  did  not  wish,  the  Lady  went  off  with  the 
guide  in  a  dilapidated  landau  to  view  the  catacombs,  leav- 
ing Monsieur  to  return  to  the  hotel.  The  coachman  stopped 
at  a  gateway  opening  into  a  small  garden,  where  a  benevolent- 
looking  old  woman  in  a  white  cap  was  grubbing  in  the  beds 
in  which  grew  a  few  artichokes  and  some  lettuce.  A  thin  old 
Frenchman  issued  from  the  tiny  house  and  looked  as  if  he 
might  have  been  one  of  the  inmates  of  the  catacombs  for  a 
century  or  two,  and  had  just  returned  to  life,  though  he  was 
the  only  suggestion  of  the  catacombs  that  the  Other-one  could 
see  around  the  place. 

He  took  her  to  a  small  shed  in  one  comer  of  the  garden 
and  unlocked  a  door  leading  into  it.  The  lady  stepped  inside, 
gave  a  glance  into  the  dark  hole  down  which  some  rude  steps 
led,  and  almost  repented  of  her  design.  Then,  gathering  up 
her  courage,  she  stumbled  down,  the  guardian  preceding 
her  with  a  very  dirty  and  ill-smelling  lantern.  At  first,  the 
Lady  could  see  nothing  —  in  spite  of  the  lantern  —  but  black 
darkness ;  but  soon  her  vision  became  accustomed  to  this,  and 
she  could  distinguish  oblong  cavities  cut  in  the  rock  and  earth 
on  each  side,  several  superimposed  on  the  lower  ones.  Gen- 
erally there  were  empty,  or  had  at  most  only  a  skull  or  a  few 
other  bones  in  them.  Once  in  a  while  the  guardian  stopped 
to  point  out  a  cavity  with  a  skull,  as  one  having  some  special 
interest.  Here  were  the  skull  and  bones  of  a  mother,  with 
the  tiny  skull  of  an  infant  on  the  bones  of  the  mother's  arm  . 
—  which  made  the  sympathetic  Other-one  sigh  at  the  pathos 
of  it.    Another  cavity  had  a  large  skull  and  extremely  long 

[411] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

bones,  those  of  a  man  who  must  have  towered  above  his  fellow 
creatures  when  alive.  In  another  gallery  were  fragments  of 
the  marble  and  tiles  which  had  been  used  to  close  up  the 
cavities  after  the  body  had  been  placed  there.  Most  of  these 
had  been  destroyed  in  opening  the  cavities,  the  old  man  said, 
but  on  those  left  were  carved  some  inscription  with  the  name 
of  the  dead.  Some  of  these  dated  back  to  the  second  and 
third  centuries,  and  a  few  even  to  the  first.  On  some  of  the 
broken  slabs,  and  on  those  intact,  he  pointed  out  the  figure 
of  the  Good  Shepherd,  and  a  dove,  or  a  fish,  etched  on  them. 
Also  he  showed  the  Lady  the  remains  of  the  plaster  envelopes 
—  some  intact  —  with  which  the  bodies  had  been  covered.  In 
some  corners  there  were  big  bowls  in  which  the  plaster  for 
the  dead  bodies  had  been  mixed,  and  hardened  lumps  of  the 
mixture  were  adhering  to  the  sides.  When  they  had  gone  on 
through  two  or  three  galleries,  and  the  Excavated  One  was 
continuing  the  exploration,  the  Other-one  could  endure  the 
darkness,  the  stuffiness,  the  pathos  of  it  all,  no  longer,  and 
called  to  him  '  *  Stop !  I  have  had  enough !  ' ' 

'*  But,  Madame,  there  are  many  more  tombs  to  see,  and 
long  galleries." 

* '  No,  no !  I  will  go  no  farther !  Let  us  get  out  into  the 
air  and  sunshine !  '  * 

When  they  came  up  out  of  the  gruesome  place,  never  had 
the  sunlight  seemed  so  precious,  nor  the  air  so  good  to  breathe. 

After  luncheon  the  jolly  guide  appeared  promptly.  "  Now 
Madame  will  come  with  me  to  my  house  and  my  little  wife 
will  have  much  pleasure  in  taking  Madame  to  the  wedding 
reception.'' 

As  the  Other-one  started  out  with  the  guide  the  Commander 
took  up  his  hat  to  accompany  her. 

Mohamed  looked  aghast.  ' '  Alas !  Monsieur  is  not  allowed ; 
the  gentlemen,  they  cannot  go  into  the  presence  of  the  ladies.  * ' 

* '  Nonsense !  ' '  exclaimed  the  Commander,  *  *  I  am  not  going 
to  hurt  them !  ' ' 

But  the  Other-one  came  to  the  rescue,  reducing  him  to  sub- 
jection; then,  taking  the  pretty  Marguerite,  she  went  away 

[4121 


BACK   TO    SOUSSE 

with  the  relieved  guide.  He  took  them  through  narrow, 
silent  streets,  past  whitewashed,  blank  walls,  until  they  came 
to  a  small  door,  upon  which  he  knocked,  afterwards  pushing 
the  door  open  and  ushering  them  into  a  tiny,  almost  bare 
room.  The  little  wife  came  forward  shyly  to  greet  the 
strangers.  She  was  a  pathetic,  sallow-looking  little  creature, 
a  great  contrast  to  her  plump,  jolly  husband.  One  might 
have  taken  her  for  a  New  England  woman  had  it  not  been 
for  her  dress  —  a  scarf-like  drapery  of  blue  striped  gauze, 
wound  around  her  like  a  short  skirt,  wooden  clogs  into  which 
her  little  brown  feet  were  thrust,  and  a  gay  little  handker- 
chief bound  around  her  hair.  The  heart  of  the  Other-one 
went  out  to  her,  she  seemed  so  gentle,  so  sweet,  so  sad. 

**  I  do  hope  the  jolly  Mohamed  has  no  other  wife!  '*  she 
thought,  as  she  took  the  soft  little  hand  in  hers.  The  wife 
brightened  up  gratefully  and  responded  to  the  greetings  in 
very  good  French,  and  she  said,  turning  an  adoring  look  at 
him,  that  her  husband  had  taught  her. 

She  hastened  to  do  the  honors  of  her  tiny  rooms.  She  took 
them  into  the  little,  dark  bedroom  —  of  which  she  seemed 
very  proud  —  lighted  only  from  the  door  and  a  small  window 
high  up,  opening  into  the  court.  A  big  bed  with  curtains  and 
gay  rugs  on  it  nearly  filled  the  space;  there  were  a  few 
trinkets  on  the  walls  of  the  room,  and  a  tiny  divan  piled 
with  cushions.  The  little  court  had  other  rooms  opening  off 
it,  and  two  or  three  old  women  were  engaged  there,  washing, 
and  cooking  cous-cous  in  perforated  jars  over  pots  on  char- 
coal fires.  Mohamed  said  they  were  relatives  who  lived 
there,  a  family  in  each  room.  A  rude  staircase  led  up  to 
the  flat  roof  where  the  women  took  the  air,  poor  things!  It 
was  all  the  recreation  they  usually  got. 

As  the  Other-one  was  taking  in  these  details,  a  knock  was 
heard  at  the  door,  and  Mohamed  hastened  to  open  it,  when 
there  stood  the  Commander  pleasantly  smiling,  much  con- 
tented with  himself  for  having  followed  the  party  unobserved ! 
The  little  wife  hastily  dragged  a  brown  hdik  off  the  wall  and 
enveloped  herself  in  it,  while  the  ancient  crones  in  the  court 

[413] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

fled  shrieking  to  their  rooms.  The  Other-one  shrieked  also 
and  flew  to  the  door  exclaiming:  **  You  wicked  man!  You 
must  not  play  practical  jokes  on  these  simple  people.  You 
can't  come  in  here,  you  well  know !  ''  Then  she  shut  the  door 
in  his  face  with  a  laugh. 

When  the  commotion  had  subsided,  Mohamed  proposed 
that  his  wife  should  now  conduct  the  Lady  to  the  bride's 
house.  Smothering  herself  still  more  closely  in  the  brown 
wrap,  the  little  wife  stole  out  of  the  door,  looking  around 
cautiously,  the  others  following  closely,  while  Mohamed 
remained  discreetly  behind.  The  little  wife  went  up  and  down 
two  or  three  narrow  streets  and  stopped  before  a  door  in  a 
high  wall,  into  which  a  crowd  of  women,  closely  wrapped  in 
brown  haiks,  were  pushing.  She  worked  her  way  through, 
pulling  the  Lady  after  her  into  a  vestibule,  whence  one  could 
look  into  a  rather  good-sized  court  which  had  doors  open- 
ing from  it  into  small  rooms  around.  Seated  all  around 
the  room,  on  very  low  divans,  were  a  number  of  young 
women  and  girls  arrayed  in  short  jackets  of  red,  blue,  white, 
and  pink  satin,  some  much  decorated  with  gold  embroidery 
and  spangles.  They  wore  short  skirts  of  silk  or  lace  and 
on  their  feet  were  satin  slippers  of  various  colors.  They 
were  adorned  with  bangles,  earrings,  necklaces,  and  bracelets, 
while  each  had  on  a  sort  of  skullcap,  also  embroidered  in  gold, 
many  with  dangling  gold  pendants.  They  were  all  painted 
red  and  powdered  white,  with  their  eyebrows  stained  in  black 
lines  to  meet  over  the  nose.  Their  hands  were  spread  con- 
spicuously before  them  and  the  nails  stained  with  henna  up 
to  the  first  joint  of  the  finger.  The  wife  pointed  out  the  bride, 
who  wore  a  white  skull-cap  heavily  embroidered  in  gold,  and 
many  more  jewels  than  the  others.  She  looked  about  fifteen 
and  was  a  rather  pretty  but  heavy  and  sleepy-looking  girl. 
Squatting  down  in  the  middle  of  the  court  were  three  or  four 
old  women  who  were  the  musicians,  no  man  being  allowed  to 
perform  m  the  presence  of  women  among  the  Arabs,  unless 
he  is  blind !    One  crone  was  beating  the  derbouka,  two  others 


[414] 


BACK  TO    SOUSSE 

played  on  pipes,  while  another  howled  a  monotonous  wail 
which  rose  into  a  shriek  sometimes. 

**  And  they  think  this  is  music!  '*  thought  the  Other-one. 
**  Well,  they  may  howl  for  the  poor  bride.  Sometime  when 
she  is  old  and  withered,  perhaps  before,  she  will  be  cast  into 
the  street  to  look  out  for  herself.'* 

**  All  these  gay  clothes  must  cost  this  husband  and  the 
others  much,'*  she  exclaimed,  turning  to  the  little  wife,  "  and 
you  say  he  is  poor;  and  who  is  that  old  woman  hovering  in 
the  background,  who  seems  to  be  so  anxious?  Is  it  the 
mother-in-law?  " 

**  It  does  cost  much,  but  less  when  they  are  rented;  and 
that  old  woman  is  the  Jewess  who  rents  them  all  their  beau- 
tiful clothes  and  jewellery. '  * 

**  Oh !  I  thought  the  caps  and  jackets  looked  much  like  those 
I  saw  on  the  fat  Jewesses  at  Ariana. '  * 

The  Other-one, —  tired  of  being  pushed  and  pulled  around 
in  the  small  vestibule  by  the  coming  and  departing  women, 
while  nothing  was  being  done,  there  was  no  prospect  of 
refreshments,  and  the  music  was  becoming  unbearable,  sig- 
nalled to  the  little  wife  that  they  must  go,  much  to  her  dis- 
appointment, for  was  it  not  a  glorious  and  wonderful 
spectacle  ? 

'  Outside,  near  by,  they  found  Mohamed  waiting  for  them. 
The  Lady  dropped  a  present  into  the  hands  of  the  little  wife, 
for  whom  she  felt  a  sudden  tenderness  and  friendship,  and 
who  brightened  up  in  response  to  this.  What  is  that  mys- 
terious thing  in  the  human  heart  which,  in  spite  of  wide  dif- 
ferences in  station  and  modes  of  life,  finds  something  that 
responds  to  it  in  some  other  human  heart  suddenly  brought 
near,  and  which  gives  a  pang  to  both  at  parting? 

**  She  is  your  only  wife,  Mohamed!  Do  be  kind  to  her 
—  she  is  so  gentle  and  tender.  Never  take  another  wife! 
Cherish  her  until  you  both  shall  die!  "  said  the  Other-one, 
hoping  to  ease  a  little  pain  in  her  heart  by  this  appeal.  But 
the   jolly   Mohamed   looked   uncomprehending,   said   **  Cer- 

I  415  ] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

tainly  not,"  and  began  to  exploit  his  talents  as  a  guide  to 
accompany  them  on  the  morrow  to  Kairouan,  where  he  had 
heard  them  say  they  were  going. 

When  the  Other-one  told  the  Commander,  that  night,  of  her 
rather  unsatisfactory  visit  to  the  bride,  he  chuckled. 

*'  I  do  not  think  I  am  ever  going  to  see  a  real  harem," 
she  said  plaintively.  "  If  I  do  happen  to  see  one,  it  is  only 
a  poor  cheap  one.  It  is  because  we  are  motorists  and  never 
stay  long  enough  anywhere  to  see  anything  of  the  real  cus- 
toms of  the  country.  It  takes  time  and  influence  to  get  into 
a  rich  Arab's  house  and  see  his  harem.  Bashir  told  me  if 
we  would  remain  long  enough  in  Tunis  he  could  get  me  a 
chance  to  see  the  harem  of  a  rich  official.'* 

' '  Nonsense !  ' '  returned  the  Commander.  *  *  What  is  the 
sight  of  an  ugly,  painted  harem  to  compare  to  what  we  enjoy 
on  the  road  going  along  in  our  automobile!  " 

The  next  morning  the  travellers  set  out  on  a  pilgrimage  to 
Kairouan,  '*  the  Holy  City."  It  was  one  of  those  crystal- 
clear  mornings,  of  which  they  had  had  many  in  North  Africa, 
and  the  air  was  of  a  delicious  quality,  impregnated  with  the 
odor  from  the  sea  mixed  with  that  of  countless  wild  flowers, 
so  that  it  seemed  very  good  to  be  alive.  The  road  was  filled 
with  the  usual  picturesque  group  of  natives,  camels,  sheep, 
and  goats.  In  the  grain  fields  the  poppies  were  a  wonder  to 
see,  so  huge  were  they,  and  of  such  brilliant  color.  There 
were  great  tufts  of  them  in  mounds  which  looked  like  great 
crimson  cushions. 

It  is  but  fifty  kilometres  from  Sousse  to  Kairouan  and  the 
Motorists  found  the  way  all  too  short  when  they  came  to  a 
wide,  barren  plain  and  saw  across  it  the  white  domes  and 
minarets  of  the  city,  cut  like  a  cameo  against  the  vivid  blue 
sky.  As  usual  on  the  road,  the  Other-one  had  rambled  on 
about  the  various  bits  of  knowledge  she  had  picked  up  con- 
cerning ' '  the  holy  city, ' '  much  of  which  the  Commander  had 
gathered  himself,  but  as  it  pleased  her  to  go  over  it,  he  lis- 
tened silently  and  patiently. 

She  began  when  they  were  not  far  on  their  journey ; — 

[416] 


BACK  TO    SOUSSE 

**  Kairouan  is  really  what  might  be  called  a  rather  modern 
city;  that  is,  it  has  had  no  Roman  progenitor.  It  stands 
where  was  once  a  forest  full  of  terrible  wild  beasts  and  huge 
poisonous  serpents,  until  the  warrior-saint,  Sidi-Okba,  arose, 
whose  mosque-tomb  we  saw  at  the  little  village  named  for 
him,  near  Biskra  —  and  how  long  ago  it  seems  since  wc  were 
there!  Coming  here  with  all  his  soldiers,  he  stuck  his  lance 
into  the  ground,  saying:  *  This  is  your  Kairouan,'  or  rest- 
ing-place ;  80  the  city  got  its  name.  Then  he  chose  fifteen  of 
his  most  religious  warriors  and  ordered  all  to  engage  in 
prayer.  Standing  in  front  he  called  out  in  a  loud  voice,  *  Ser- 
pents and  savage  beasts,  we  are  the  companions  of  the 
Prophet.  Retire,  for  we  intend  to  dwell  here !  *  When  they 
heard  his  voice,  all  the  savage  creatures  fled  with  their  young, 
and  the  forests  where  they  had  dwelt  vanished  forever.  It 
is  said  by  good  Mussulmans  that  this  is  why  the  city  has 
been  in  a  desert  ever  since. 

/*  Mohammed  taught  that  there  were  three  gardens  of  para- 
dise, four  holy  cities,  and  four  oratories.    The  three  gardens 
include  Mecca  and  Jerusalem,  while  Kairouan  is  one  of  the 
best  known  oratories  or  gates  of  heaven.    If  a  Mohammedan  M 
makes  seven  visits  to  Kairouan,  it  is  equal  to  one  to  Mecca.**'  ' 

The  car  approached  the  crenellated  walls  of  the  city,  and 
the  travellers  went  to  stop  at  a  little  hotel  in  the  European 
quarter;  they  made  arrangements  for  luncheon,  not  hoping 
for  much,  for  some  one  had  said  to  them:  **  No  macter  to 
which  of  the  two  hotels  you  go,  you  will  wish  you  had  gone 
to  the  other !  *  *  The  delighted  landlord  issued  forth  from 
this  one  and  made  every  effort  to  give  them  of  his  best,  and 
as  he  was  a  retired  cook  himself,  he  really  did  very  well 
indeed,  serving  them  an  excellent  luncheon  when  they  came 
for  it  later;  for  as  it  was  yet  early,  the  Commander  gave 
orders  to  begin  sight-seeing  at  once.  A  guide  appeared  as 
if  by  magic  —  an  elegant  and  slim  young  fellow,  looking  like 
a  student  from  a  university,  and  was  quite  distinguished  in 
a  long  white  silk  burnous  with  fine  black  lines  through  it; 
he  wore  the  most  irreproachable  patent-leather  pumps  and 

[417] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

white  stockings,  while  the  blue  silk  tassel  depending  from  his 
red  Chechia  was  of  generous  proportions.  He  proposed  rid- 
ing around  in  the  car  to  do  their  sight-seeing,  saying  they 
would  have  no  difficulty  in  getting  it  through  the  streets. 

So  they  set  out,  going  up  through  the  picturesque  gate,  the 
Bab  Djelladin,  with  the  soft  green  of  sycamore-trees  showing 
through  it,  into  the  principal  street  of  Kairouan,  the  Rue 
Saussier,  which  runs  straight  through  the  town  to  the  Porte 
de  Tunis. 

*'  The  walls  of  the  city,"  said  the  guide,  ''  are  twenty  feet 
high.  They  have  many  towers  and  bastions,  as  you  must  have 
noticed.  They  are  pierced  by  four  gates.  The  city  has 
twenty-three  mosques,  and  ninety  marabouts'  tombs,  or  Zaou- 
ias.  It  is  the  only  city  in  Tunis  where  Christians  ijiay  enter 
the  mosques,  but  it  is  necessary  to  have  a  permit  to  do  so. 
This  the  landlord  has  provided,  and  I  have  it  here.  But  per- 
haps you  will  wish  to  go  to  some  of  the  houses  where  they 
weave  the  rugs  for  which  Kairouan  is  famous?  '' 

*  *  No !  "  answered  the  Commander,  eying  the  guide  rather 
suspiciously,  '^  we  will  leave  that  until  later.'' 

**  As  you  please,"  returned  the  elegant  guide,  looking  dis- 
appointed. 

They  passed  a  small  street.  Here  their  guide  stopped  to 
point  out  the  Zaouia  of  Sidi-Abid-el-Gueriane.  This  has  a  fine 
entrance,  and  the  travellers  went  in  for  a  few  moments  to  see 
the  beautiful  Moorish  ceiling  in  the  vestibule,  and  the  fine 
court  beyond  surrounded  by  a  double  gallery.  The  tomb  of 
the  saint  has  a  beautiful  ceiling  also,  in  the  shape  of  a  square 
cupola,  with  wonderful  decorations  in  stucco-work. 

Passing  on,  they  came  to  the  sacred  well  of  El  Barota,  which 
looks  like  a  marabout's  tomb.  It  is  the  only  well  in  Kairo- 
uan. It  was  discovered  first,  the  guide  said  solemnly,  by  a 
greyhound  scratching  the  soil.  '*  It  connects  directly  with 
the  sacred  well  at  Mecca,"  he  added.  *'  Once  a  pilgrim  at 
that  well  in  Mecca  dropped  his  drinking  cup  into  it  and  the 
cup  disappeared.  A  long  time  afterwards,  when  he  returned 
here,  he  found  it  in  this  well." 

[418  1 


BACK   TO    SOUSSE 

The  car  rolled  slowly  down  the  long,  straight  street  with  its 
picturesque,  irregular  groups  of  mosques,  minarets,  and 
booths.  The  street  was  full  of  life  and  movement,  and  every- 
thing was  dazzlingly  white  this  hot,  sunny  day ;  so  it  was  a 
relief  when  the  guide  had  the  car  stopped  and  led  them  under 
a  horseshoe-arched  gate,  decorated  in  black  and  white,  and 
into  the  cool  shade  of  the  covered  souks,  out  of  the  glare  of  the 
street.  The  souks  are  lighted  only  by  the  square  openings  in 
the  roof,  so  there  was  a  soft  gloom.  Here  a  crowd  was  moving 
along:  slender  Arab  dandies,  with  refined  pale  olive  faces, 
and  wearing  burnouses  of  the  most  delicate  coloring,  rubbed 
shoulders  with  the  blackest  of  Soudanese  in  ragged  sacking; 
grave  and  reverend  white-turbaned  patriarchs  seemingly  from 
the  times  of  the  Bible,  jostled  against  beggars  in  the  filthiest 
of  rags. 

The  most  interesting  souk  to  the  travellers  was  that  of  the 
rug-sellers;  for  Kairouan  is  celebrated  for  its  carpets  and 
rugs,  and  the  booths  all  along  on  both  sides  were  heaped  high 
with  them,  some  most  beautiful  old  ones  with  soft,  silken,  lus- 
trous nap,  and  dull,  rich  tones.  The  Commander  could  not 
resist  Ihem;  he  paused  to  bargain  through  the  subtle  guide, 
who  could  not,  probably,  get  his  customary  commissions  with 
this  veteran  bargainer.  At  one  booth  the  Commander  was 
compelled  to  pay  the  price  asked  for  a  beautiful  old  rug  for 
which,  contrary  to  his  usual  custom,  he  let  his  admiration 
show.  Offering  two-thirds  of  the  price  named,  he  strolled  off 
carelessly  with  the  guide,  but  the  dealer  did  not  call  after 
him,  **  Take  it,  take  it,  Monsieur!  ''  So  he  returned  later, 
somewhat  crestfallen,  and  paid  the  original  price  asked,  to  the 
Other-one's  amusement  and  the  guide's  evident  satisfaction. 
They  were  informed  that  there  was  no  regular  manufactory 
for  rugs,  but  that  the  weaving  was  generally  done  at  home  by 
the  women  and  children,  the  loom  usually  being  set  up  in  a 
room  off  the  court  of  the  house ;  and  that  the  designs  and  man- 
ner of  weaving  had  been  handed  down  in  families. 

Leaving  the  sotiks,  they  walked  up  a  narrow  street  to  see 
the  ancient  ^losque  of  Djama  Tleta  Biban,  or  the  Mosque 

[419] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

of  the  Three  Portals.  The  facade  of  this  is  very  curious. 
Above  the  three  doors  there  are  three  courses  of  cream- 
colored  stone  engraved  with  Cufic  characters.  The  capitals 
of  the  pillars  upholding  the  arches  over  the  doors  are 
Byzantine. 

The  guide  now  directed  the  chauffeur  to  go  outside  the  walls 
to  see  the  most  beautiful  mosque  in  Kairouan  and  the  inter- 
esting Aglabite  cisterns.  These  are  two  immense  reservoirs, 
open  to  the  sky,  were  built  by  the  Aglabites,  and  have  been 
restored;  they  are  now  used  to  hold  the  overflow  of  water 
from  Cherchera  in  time  of  floods.  As  these  were  not  espe- 
cially interesting  to  the  travellers,  the  guide  then  took 
them  (now  with  the  air  of  having  something  wonder- 
ful to  show  them)  to  the  Mosque  of  the  Barber  (Djama 
Sidi-Sahab).  Here  lies  Abou-Zemaa-el-Beloui.  He  is  said 
to  have  been  one  of  the  barbers  of  the  prophet;  and 
buried  with  him  are  three  hairs  from  the  beard  of  Moham- 
med, which  the  barber  always  carried  with  him:  one  under 
his  tongue,  one  under  his  arm,  and  one  next  his  heart.  They 
entered  the  mosque  by  a  beautiful  vestibule  lined  with  fine 
tiles  and  the  most  exquisite  arabesque  work  on  the  walls  like 
filmy  lace  suspended  there,  such  is  the  fineness  of  the  pattern. 
This  gives  entrance  to  a  court  with  arches  supported  by  mar- 
ble columns,  and  beyond  is  still  another  rich  vestibule  and 
another  splendid  court  with  beautiful  arcades,  glazed  tiles, 
and  decorations  in  stucco-work  marvellously  lovely.  The  Two 
stood  astonished  at  the  beauty  of  the  interior  of  this  mosque, 
for  most  of  those  they  had  hitherto  seen  in  Algeria  were 
very  simple  and  plain.  They  lingered  a  little  to  study  the 
exquisitely  fanciful  designs  of  the  work  interweaving  phrases 
from  the  Koran  or  inscriptions  —  in  spite  of  the  sour  look 
of  the  ancient  Moslem  who  had  taken  them  in  charge  upon 
entering,  and  who  now,  as  they  approached  the  sacred  tomb, 
scowled  ferociously,  calling  to  a  feeble  old  man,  who  came 
hobbling  to  meet  the  Two,  and  carrying  some  yellow  slippers 
of  extraordinary  dimensions.    They  shuffled  after  the  Fierce 

[420] 


illi 


u. 


I    il    I   I 

ill  I 


THE  GRAM)   AI08(^UE  AT   KAIh'oUAX 


Tin;    MOSQUE   OF   SIDI-SAHAB,   OR   THE   MOSQUE 
OF  THE  BARBER,  KAIROUAN 


BACK  TO    SOUSSE 

One  into  the  obscurity  of  the  tomb  chamber,  nearly  full  of 
devotees  praying  before  the  revered  sepulchre  of  the  Barber. 
As  soon  as  the  Two  could  see  clearly  they  discovered  a  huge 
catafalque  covered  with  draperies,  one  of  black  velvet  em- 
broidered in  silver  in  Arabic  inscriptions,  and  another  of 
a  beautiful  heavy  brocade.  The  walls,  they  saw,  were  also 
rich  in  tiles  and  exquisite  stucco-work. 

At  the  great  door,  they  saw  the  car  and  Adrian,  who 
appeared  to  be  in  a  state  of  great  excitement.  Two  long, 
lean,  brown  men  were  coming  in,  one  bearing  a  fat  bag  in 
his  hand,  and  the  other  a  big  tambourine.  As  soon  as  the 
man  with  the  bag  saw  the  strangers,  he  dropped  to  the 
ground,  opened  his  bag,  and  took  therefrom  an  ugly  snake, 
which,  as  soon  as  placed  on  the  ground,  raised  itself  and 
spread  its  hood  in  a  threatening  and  unpleasant  manner. 

**  They  must  be  the  snake-charmers,*'  said  the  Other-one. 

After  the  grizzled  old  man  had  beaten  the  tambourine 
loudly  and  fiercely,  the  other  man  began  to  knock  the  snake 
around  and  to  throw  it  up  in  the  air,  whereat  it  hissed  and 
extended  its  hood  alarmingly.  Then  the  man  pressed  it  to 
his  face,  muttering  strange  words  like  incantations.  It  was 
time,  then,  to  get  a  little  money;  so  the  tambourine  was 
passed,  after  which  the  snake-charmer  was  about  to  repeat 
his  buffetings  of  the  ugly  reptile,  but  the  Commander  con- 
sidered they  had  had  enough  for  the  money  and  gave  the 
order  to  move  on. 

The  next  mosque  in  order,  being  near  and  in  the  suburb 
of  the  Zlass,  was  the  Mosque  of  the  Swords,  or  Amar-Abbada. 
It  is  very  effective  with  its  six  white  domes,  fluted  —  a  rare 
thing  to  find  here  in  domes.  The  interior  is  very  bare  and 
disappointingly  plain  after  the  beautiful  work  in  the  Barber's 
Mosque.  This  marabout  was  a  blacksmith  and  *  *  to  impress 
people  with  his  importance,*'  he  forged  the  huge  swords  and 
pipes  now  lying  around  the  tomb  chamber,  which  some  be- 
lieved he  was  strong  enough  to  use.  He  was  reputed  even  to 
have  had  power  and  strength  sufficient  to  bring  the  mammoth 
bronze  anchors  now  in  the  courtyard,  on  his  shoulders,  from 

[421] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

the  Porto  Farina.  When  they  returned  to  the  Bab  Djelladin, 
the  guide  informed  them  that  near  this  is  the  Zaouia  of  the 
Aissaouas  who  have  public  exercises  every  Friday,  and  this 
being  that  day,  the  travellers,  if  they  would  remain,  could  go 
in  the  evening  and  see  the  wonderful  exercises  of  this  sect. 

*  *  No,  indeed !  ' '  said  the  Other-one  to  the  Commander. 
**  They  are  horrible  —  that  is,  the  exercises  they  go  through, 
you  know.  Have  you  heard  the  legend  about  a  marabout 
named  Aissa  (which  is  Jesus,  in  our  tongue)  ?  He  was  wan- 
dering once  in  a  desert  and  suffered  for  want  of  food,  so 
that  he  came  near  dying  of  starvation;  but,  such  was  his 
faith,  that  he  had  miraculous  power  given  him  to  eat  all 
sorts  of  things,  so  he  fed  upon  snakes,  scorpions,  glass,  and 
the  leaves  of  the  prickly  pear.  And  his  followers,  the  Ais- 
saouas, work  themselves  into  such  a  state  of  frenzy  that  they 
swallow  glass  and  snakes,  and  run  themselves  through  with 
swords.  Many  travellers  have  the  morbid  curiosity  to  go 
and  see  them,  but  as  for  me, —  never!  *' 

When  the  travellers  had  finished  a  really  delectable 
luncheon  cooked  by  the  agreeable  landlord  himself,  the  ele- 
gant guide  strolled  languidly  in  and  proposed  that  they 
should  go  at  once  to  the  Grand  Mosque  —  Djama  Kebir  — 
* '  the  finest  in  the  world.  * '  It  stands  in  the  northeast  part  of 
the  city,  near  the  ramparts,  and,  with  its  rectangular  walls 
and  great  square  minaret,  is  very  imposing  when  seen  from 
outside  the  city;  but  the  guide  took  them  through  a  maze 
of  narrow  streets  whence  it  could  not  be  seen,  and  sometimes 
it  seemed  as  if  the  car  must  be  stuck  between  the  walls. 
They  stopped  at  the  western  entrance,  which  is  one  of  the 
two  principal  doors  —  not  so  monumental  or  imposing  as 
the  gate  of  Llella  Re j ana,  but  the  one  most  used.  The  guide 
knocked  sharply  and  presented  his  permit  to  the  tall,  severe- 
looking  Moslem  who  threw  open  the  door.  He  admitted  the 
party  reluctantly,  and  scowled  at  them  as  though,  if  he  had 
dared,  he  would  have  driven  them  away.  They  entered  at 
once  into  a  most  imposing  and  monumental  court  paved  with 
white  marble  and  surrounded  by  a  double  arcade  of  columns 

[  422  ] 


BACK   TO    SOUSSE 

reinforced  by  pillars.  In  the  middle  of  the  north  side  rises 
a  great  square  minaret  of  three  stories,  each  diminishing  in 
height  and  breadth  of  the  top.  It  is  not  a  graceful  or  beauti- 
ful one,  but  imposing  in  size.  Under  the  whole  is  a  great 
reservoir  of  water  which  is  reached  through  openings  in  the 
marble  pavement.  The  party  crossed  over  to  the  south  side, 
where  high  doors  give  access  to  the  mosque. 

If  the  Two  had  been  amazed  at  the  great  court,  they  were 
infinitely  more  astonished  at  this  interior  which  is  called  the 
maksoura,  or  prayer  chamber,  by  Moslems.  It  was  like  enter- 
ing a  great  forest  of  closely  growing  trees  and  the  shade 
was  infinitely  agreeable  after  the  glare  of  the  sun  in  the 
white  paved  court.  At  first  they  could  barely  distinguish 
this  forest  of  columns,  but  gradually,  as  their  eyes  became 
accustomed  to  the  agreeable  gloom,  they  were  able  to  note 
some  of  the  details.  The  guide  told  them  that  there  are 
seventeen  naves  of  eight  arches  each,  each  arch  resting  on 
beautiful  columns  of  marble,  onyx,  and.  porphyry,  two  hun- 
dred and  ninety -six  in  all.  He  then  pointed  out  the  various 
capitals,  some  Roman,  some  Byzantine,  a  few  showing  Chris- 
tian influence,  many  of  curious  style,  and  some  very  beautiful. 
There  are  two  red  porphyry  monoliths  of  especial  beauty, 
which  sustain  the  last  arcade  of  the  central  transverse.  The 
guide  then  walked  over  to  show  the  Two  the  mihrah,  or  niche, 
showing  the  direction  of  Mecca,  flanked  with  beautiful  red 
porphyry  columns,  brought  from  ancient  Caisarea  —  now 
Cherchel — in  Algeria.  The  walls  have  the  most  exquisite 
stucco-work  and  below  they  are  decorated  with  mosaics  of 
marble  and  lapis-lazuli.  Through  it,  when  lighted  up,  can 
be  seen  the  original  mihrah  of  Sidi-Okba.  Regarding  this 
the  legend  says  that  Sidi  Okba  was  much  in  doubt  where  to 
place  the  mihrah  in  this  great  mosque  he  founded.  In  all 
other  mosques  the  imam,  who  reads  the  prayers,  turns  a  little 
to  the  right  or  to  the  left,  to  show  that  the  direction  may 
not  probably  be  right;  but  in  this  mosque  it  is  exact,  for  it 
was  revealed  to  Sidi-Okba  in  a  dream  after  a  long  prayer. 
He  was  directed  by  an  angel  to  take  his  standard  and  wander 

[423] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

around,  mornings,  in  the  city  until  he  heard  the  cry  "  Allah 
akha^*  (God  is  great).  When  he  heard  this  he  immediately 
planted  his  standard,  saying:  '*  Here  is  the  mihrab!  '' 

At  the  right  of  this  is  the  eighteen-foot-high  mimhar,  or 
pulpit.  All  the  panels  in  this  are  beautifully  carved  in  wood 
brought  from  Bagdad,  and  with  extracts  from  the  Koran  or 
inscriptions  pertaining  to  the  mosque.  The  dome  is  supported 
by  porphyry  columns  nearly  forty  feet  high  and  all  the  light 
comes  from  the  colored  glass  in  it.  There  are  great  crystal 
chandeliers  hung  from  the  ceiling,  and  myriads  of  small 
lamps  in  lustres.  What  most  struck  the  travellers  was  the 
great  simplicity  of  the  whole  construction,  combined  with 
the  grandeur  of  the  proportions  which  gives  this,  unlike  most 
other  mosques,  as  one  writer  says,  **  a  cathedral-like  aspect.'* 
There  were  lingering  devotees  here  and  there,  saying  their 
prayers.  A  low  murmur  could  be  heard  all  through  the 
prayer  chamber  like  the  humming  of  bees. 

At  last  the  Two  —  much  to  the  relief  of  the  fierce  Moslem 
—  reluctantly  followed  the  guide  out  from  the  cool  precincts 
of  the  mosque  into  the  glare  of  the  great  white  court. 

* '  After  all,  * '  observed  the  Other-one,  as  they  went  out  to 
the  car,  *'  I  never  feel  that  solemn  and  religious  awe  in  a 
mosque,  no  matter  how  big  or  beautiful  it  is,  that  I  experience 
in  a  cathedral.  The  one  stands  for  a  great  and  unselfish  re- 
ligion—  *  doing  unto  others  as  you  would  have  others  do  to 
you';  the  other  for  a  voluptuous  and  selfish  cult.** 

When  the  Commander  handed  the  eloquent  guide  his  well- 
earned  money,  as  they  were  about  to  roll  away,  he  asked  if 
he  might  ride  with  them  to  Sousse  where  he  had  business, 
and  as  it  was  not  in  the  kind  Commander  to  refuse  a  reason- 
able request,  he  gave  the  desired  permission.  And  well  that 
he  did,  for  not  far  from  Kairouan  a  tire  burst,  then  another, 
in  that  exasperating  way  tires  have  of  keeping  one  another 
company,  especially  if  the  motorists  are  in  haste  to  reach  a 
haven  at  night.  The  elegant  guide  slipped  off  his  silk  mantle 
and  **  put  his  shoulder  to  the  wheel  **  in  reality,  working  with 


[424] 


BACK  TO    SOUSSE 

a  vim  but  presenting  quite  another  and  a  very  ordinary 
appearance  in  a  white  shirt  and  very  baggy  trousers. 

The  Motorists  arrived  late  at  Sousse  well  pleased  with  the 
day's  excursion,  but  the  jolly  Mohamed,  a  trace  less  jolly 
than  yesterday,  looked  as  if  he  felt  their  trip  to  be  a  blunder 
and  a  failure  without  him. 


[425  3 


CHAPTER  XXV 

BACK  TO  TUNIS  :  THEN  TO  ALGIERS  BY  THE  COL  DE  TIROURDA 
AND   farewell! 

WHEN  the  Motorists  left  Sousse  they  felt  that  now  their 
faces  were  really  turned  homeward,  for  they  had 
reached,  with  the  trip  to  the  troglodytes  and  Kairouan,  the 
farthest  eastern  points  toward  which  they  had  laid  their  plans. 

From  Sousse  their  road  followed  the  seacoast  northward, 
but  instead  of  going  as  they  came  by  Grombalia,  the  Com- 
mander turned  off  at  Bir-bu-Rekba  for  Hammamet  and  Na- 
beul.  He  always  desired,  when  returning  to  a  point,  to 
change  the  route  if  possible  and  add  to  his  repertory  —  if  one 
may  say  so  —  some  new  places.  This  hot  afternoon  they  came 
to  the  little  town  of  Hammamet  asleep  on  the  sands  by  the 
sea.  There  were  old  fishing-boats  lying  high  and  dry  upon 
the  beach,  and  some  Arab  boys,  very  scantily  clothed,  were 
sporting  around  them,  but  scurried  off  to  the  car  when  they 
saw  it  and  flung  themselves  at  it  in  the  joy  of  a  new  attrac- 
tion. There  were  white  bungalows  of  the  winter  visitors 
scattered  among  the  trees  back  of  the  sands,  but  what  most 
attracted  the  Motorists  was  a  picturesque  old  fort,  asleep  on 
the  rocks  beyond  the  beach. 

They  alighted  from  the  car  and,  followed  by  all  the  gamins, 
went  to  climb,  by  rude  stone  steps,  up  to  the  entrance  gate, 
where  a  sort  of  Rip-van-Winkle  old  guardian  let  them  in, 
after  routing  the  Arab  boys  with  harsh  gutturals.  They 
entered  an  ancient,  dilapidated,  grass-grown  court  with  some 
antique  and  rusty  cannon  imbedded  in  it.  They  mounted 
an  old  stone  staircase  —  likewise  grass-grown  —  and  from  the 
bastion  looked  down  on  the  blue  sea  placidly  beating  upon 
the  beach.  On  the  other  side,  a  white  mosque  snuggled  most 
picturesquely  against  the  gray  old  walls  of  the  fort. 

[4261 


BACK    TO    ALGIERS 

**  How  placid  and  sleepy  it  all  is  now !  "  said  the  Other-one. 
**  Once,  long  ago, —  though  it  does  not  seem  possible  now, — 
it  was  bristling  with  guns  and  alive  with  fierce  corsairs.'* 

Up  from  Hammamet,  the  road  of  the  travellers  lay  through 
groves  of  lemon-trees,  for  here  these  trees  grow  luxuriantly. 
Near  Nabeul  there  were  also  many  orange-groves  and  gar- 
dens, and  the  air  was  heavy  with  their  fragrance.  In  the 
town  —  a  white,  dusty-looking  little  place  —  there  are  some 
distilleries  for  perfumes.  The  travellers  saw  many  yards 
with  great  kilns  at  one  side,  and  piles  of  white  earth  which 
natives  were  wetting  and  working,  for  here  they  fabricate  a 
very  pretty  glazed  ware  —  vases,  jars,  bottles,  and  basins 
which  recall  Greek  and  Roman  shapes,  and  have  an  iridescent 
lustre  like  the  old  Hispanic-Moorish  plaques. 

As  there  was  nothing  to  hold  the  travellers  here,  after  view- 
ing the  potteries,  they  fled  away  toward  Tunis,  to  which  they 
drew  near  at  night  when  the  sky  was  growing  dark  and  a 
silver  crescent  moon  hung  high  over  old  Carthage,  wliile  the 
lights  of  the  Oriental  city,  at  the  end  of  the  long  canal,  were 
twinkling  like  millions  of  glow-worms. 

A  day  or  two  in  Tunis,  and  then  away  to  Algiers  and  the 
journey's  end.  The  Commander  decided  to  take  the  road 
through  the  old  town  of  Le  Kef,  two  hundred  and  two  kilo- 
metres to  the  southwest,  and  to  pass  the  night  there  if  neces- 
sary. They  went  out  from  fascinating  Tunis,  running  along 
its  ancient  walls  and  gates  to  where  the  road  turned  off  to 
La  Manouba,  whose  white  villas  they  left  to  the  right,  and 
crossed  a  barren  plain  with  the  serrated  outlines  of  old  Zag- 
houan  now  coming  near  and  then  retreating.  They  went 
across  the  picturesque  Roman  bridge  at  Medijez-el-Bab  to 
Teboursouk,  leaving  the  road  to  Dougga  —  toward  which  the 
Other-one  cast  a  longing  glance  —  to  their  right.  Part  of 
the  time  the  road  lay  over  plains  that  were  a  mosaic  of  rich 
colors  with  myriads  of  wild  flowers,  and  there  were  many 
fragments  of  columns,  capitals,  friezes,  and  broken  arches 
here  and  there,  showing  where  there  once  must  have  been 
many  flourishing  Roman  villages. 

[427] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

When  they  came  up  to  the  town  of  Le  Kef  they  found  it 
dirty  and  ill-paved,  and  certainly  there  was  nothing  of  inter- 
est showing,  although  it  contains  a  recently  excavated  basilica 
dedicated  to  St.  Peter.  Sent  by  the  Commander  into  one  of 
the  small  inns  to  reconnoitre,  the  Other-one  returned  to  the 
car  with  a  face  expressive  of  deep  disgust.  **  It  is  impos- 
sible !  ' '  she  said.  * '  The  courtyard  is  a  mass  of  filth  and 
the  dining-room  dark  and  dirty !  '  * 

*  *  Well,  let  us  try  the  other  one,  near  by.  We  really  ought 
to  stop  here  to-night.  We  are  all  tired,  and  it  looks  like 
rain!" 

The  black-browed  landlord  at  the  other  small  inn  wel- 
comed her  with  effusion,  but  the  entrance  was  through  a 
dirty  saloon  where  sodden  and  unkempt  men  were  drinking 
and  quarrelling.     She  came  back  again. 

*  *  Worse  and  worse !  ' '  she  exclaimed.  *  *  Let  us  sleep  in  the 
car  to-night;  it  will  be  such  fun!  And  there  are  four 
crackers  and  six  dates  left  in  the  basket.  We  can  sup  like 
royal  princes  on  those  with  a  little  exercise  of  imagination !  * ' 

**  What  nonsense!  "  cried  the  Commander.  "We  will  go 
on  to  Souk-el- Arba !  '' 

There  was  a  threatening,  black  cloud  hanging  in  the  sky 
which  dissolved  in  rain  before  they  reached  that  town  whose 
poorly  lighted  streets  they  entered  tired,  worn,  and  hungry. 
At  the  first  hotel  the  landlord  declared  that  his  house  was 
full,  but  kindly  informed  them  that  there  was  another  very 
comfortable  one  near  by,  kept  by  an  Italian.  The  Other-one 
climbed  the  dark,  steep  staircase  of  the  hotel  pointed  out, 
behind  a  slatternly  padrona  and  gave  a  glance  at  the  rooms 
shown  her.  Then  she  rushed  to  the  balcony  that  ran  around 
the  rooms  and  called  to  the  Commander  below: 

* '  It  's  worse  than  impossible !  Oh,  I  wish  we  had  stayed  at 
Le  Kef !  Do  let  us  sleep  in  the  car  with  cleanliness  and  fresh 
air  around  us!  " 

But  the  Commander  was  deaf  to  her  entreaties.  The  greasy 
dinner  was  served,  strange  to  say,  by  a  fine,  large  and  clean- 
looking  landlord,  a  great  contrast  to  his  hotel,  but  at  an  un- 

[428] 


MOSQUE   OF  THE   SWORDS,  AT    KAIROUAN 


MTNARET  OF  THE  GREAT  MOSQUE,  AT  KAIROUAN 


BACK    TO    ALGIERS 

usually  early  hour  the  next  morning,  the  ^lotorists  slipped 
away  without  breakfasting,  for  various  reasons. 

Tlie  morning  was  sparkling  and  fresh,  for  the  heavy  rain 
of  the  night  before  had  washed  the  air  from  dust,  and  it  had 
a  delicious  quality  that  made  the  Two  glad  they  were  alive 
to  breathe  it.  They  went  up  the  hills  and  turned  for  a  last 
farewell  look  over  the  glorious  view  spread  out  —  the  great 
misty  mountains  dark  on  their  flanks  with  forests  and  the 
green  plain  undulating  away.  Through  the  shade  and  spicy 
odors  of  the  forests  they  came  to  Babouche  and  the  frontier, 
and  bade  farewell  to  Tunisia,  in  which  they  had  spent  so 
many  delightful  days.  They  bowled  down  to  sleepy  La  Calle 
with  the  surf  still  beating  on  its  rocks,  and  then  to  Philippe- 
ville,  to  pass  the  night  in  a  hotel  which  by  comparison  seemed 
to  the  Lady  the  most  elegant,  clean,  and  luxurious  she  had 
ever  slept  in.  However,  it  did  not  give  her  much  regret  to 
leave  this  rather  unattractive  modern  town,  though  she  re- 
membered that  Domini  had  landed  here  on  her  way  to  the 
*'  Garden  of  Allah.'' 

**  I  wish,*'  said  the  Other-one,  **  we  might  have  gone  to 
the  Landon  Garden  in  the  suburbs  laid  out  by  the  Count 
Landon.  It  is  said  to  be  as  beautiful  as  the  one  he  laid  out 
at  Biskra;  and  what  delightful  memories  it  would  recall!  '* 

"  It  is  impossible,"  returned  the  Commander.  **  We  must 
make  the  next  boat  which  leaves  Algiers.  I  have  a  treat  for 
you,  however.  We  are  going  up  into  a  beautiful  forest  at  El 
Milia  on  the  way  to  Djidjelli,  and  from  there  along  the  won- 
derful road  above  the  sea  to  Bougie  for  the  night.'* 

Never  had  the  wild  flowers  been  more  luxuriant  on  the 
wayside  and  in  the  fields  than  on  that  glorious,  sunny  day. 
The  wild  convolvulus  made  a  tangle  of  its  pale  mauve  blos- 
soms everywhere,  and  the  fields  of  blue  alkanet  seemed  to 
have  borrowed  their  intense  hue  from  the  sky.  They  passed 
wide  orange-groves  before  ascending  the  hills  and  then  they 
ran  up  into  the  beautiful  forest  near  El  Milia,  and  the  green 
shade  was  delightful  after  the  hot  sun. 

Here  the  Commander  proposed  halting  for  luncheon  but 

[  429  ] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

the  small  wayside  restaurant  promised  badly  for  the  hungry 
Motorists  when  they  glanced  into  its  dark  and  poverty- 
stricken  interior.  The  Other-one  saw,  however,  near  a  little 
path  which  dipped  down  under  some  great  trees,  a  small 
guide-post  reading,  **  To  the  Cafe  Robinat.'*  On  investigat- 
ing they  found  a  tiny  cafe  in  a  sylvan  spot  and  a  garden 
flecked  with  sunlight  and  shade.  Great  masses  of  rose-bushes 
in  most  luxuriant  bloom  climbed  the  walls  and  house,  or  stood 
in  great  clumps  around  it,  filling  the  air  with  perfume.  It 
seemed  a  paradise  to  the  travellers,  especially  when  the  tall 
and  stately  landlady  ordered  a  little  table,  spread  with  the 
whitest  of  cloths,  to  be  placed  under  the  shade  of  a  tree,  and 
herself,  with  the  gracious  air  of  a  high-born  dame,  set  thereon 
a  vase  of  the  most  fragrant  crimson  roses.  She  stood  near 
while  they  feasted,  pleased  to  see  them  appreciative  of  the 
delicious  repast.  She  sighed  as  she  spoke  of  her  old  home 
in  Toulouse,  in  la  helle  France,  but  added  that  she  was  con- 
tented in  this  far-off  land,  for  had  she  not  this  garden  and 
these  beautiful  roses?  And  she  saw  that  Monsieur  and 
Madame  loved  the  roses  as  she  did  herself. 

"With  a  charming  memory  of  their  experience  in  the  forest 
of  El  Milia  they  sped  down  to  Djidjelli,  and  off  over  the 
glorious  road  cut  in  the  great  rocks  overhanging  the  sea 
which  fringed  their  bases  with  foam.  At  night  they  came 
to  Bougie,  lying  on  the  flank  of  Mount  Gouraya,  which  was 
dark  against  a  golden  sky.  In  the  morning,  when  the  car 
rolled  out  of  Bougie,  the  Commander  was  visibly  excited. 
He  turned  to  the  Other-one  two  or  three  times,  opened  his 
mouth  as  if  to  speak,  then  thought  better  of  it.  At  last  he 
could  no  longer  control  his  desire  to  tell  the  Lady  something. 

'*  I  have  a  surprise  for  you,*'  he  said.  *'  I  was  going  to 
keep  it  until  we  arrived  at  the  place,  but,  after  all,  anticipa- 
tion is  more  than  half.  What  do  you  think?  I  have  found 
out  that  we  can  return  to  Algiers  by  the  Col  de  Tirourda 
which  was  covered  with  snow  when  we  left,  but  it  was  opened 
only  a  day  or  two  ago.'* 


[430 


BACK    TO    ALGIERS 

''Glorious!"  exclaimed  the  Other-one.  ''They  say  the 
scenery  is  magnificent.  It  will  be  a  fitting  ending  for  our 
last  day  of  motoring  in  North  Africa." 

The  Commander  took  the  road  which  led  up  the  hills  and 
through  the  luxuriant  valley  of  the  Oued  Soummam  to  El 
Kseur.  The  river,  a  muddy  stream,  ran  sometimes  near  and 
sometimes  afar,  bordered  plantations  of  fig-trees  and  fields 
of  barley.  The  Babor  Mountains  dropped  away  and  the 
Djurdjura  began  to  marshal  their  serrated  peaks  into  sight, 
some  streaked  with  snow.  On  almost  inaccessible  crags  and 
ridges,  overhanging  gorges  and  profound  ravines,  slipping 
down  steep  mountain-sides,  were  the  Kabyle  villages,  gray, 
like  strange  fungus  growths,  when  seen  afar;  but  nearer, 
their  red-tiled  roofs  gave  a  little  color  to  the  gray  crags.  Now 
the  clouds  began  to  slip  together  and  the  plains  and  hills 
grew  dark  under  their  shadow.  There  was  a  mist  of  rain, 
but  in  a  short  time  the  clouds  opened  again  showing  streaks 
of  blue  sky  and  a  great,  white-topped  peak,  the  Llella  Kha- 
didja,  the  culminating  point  of  the  Djurdjuras.  The  scenery 
grew  wilder,  the  Kabyle  villages,  on  their  inaccessible  crags, 
more  numerous.  At  Tazmalt  the  road  turned  off  and  began 
to  climb  at  once  and  by  loops  up  the  mountain.  Llella  Kha- 
didja  appeared  and  disappeared  as  great,  jagged  masses  of 
mountains  opened  or  shut  together.  The  travellers  looked 
down  into  tremendous  ravines;  great  gorges  opened,  and  the 
small,  green  patches  of  Kabyle  cultivation  disappeared; 
rocks  were  everywhere  heaped  above  them;  the  car  plunged 
through  tunnels  and  came  out  upon  scenery  more  wild,  deso- 
late, and  barren.  The  grades  were  steep,  the  curves  abrupt. 
The  car  toiled  up  on  first  or  second  speed,  and  still  up  to 
greater  desolation.  There  were  no  signs  of  life  anywhere. 
Soon  the  road  was  banked  with  snow,  and  the  track  through 
was  scarcely  clear.  From  the  opposite  side  of  a  deep  chasm 
Llella  Khadidja  looked  across.  They  were  almost  on  a  level 
with  her  crest.  She  seemed  to  smile  at  them ;  then  caught  at 
a  fleecy  cloud  floating  near  and  veiled  herself  like  a  true 


431] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

Moslem.  It  was  the  summit  at  last  and  the  Two  felt  a  sensa- 
tion of  having  reached  the  farthest  peak  of  the  world,  so 
utterly  desolate  did  everything  seem  around  them. 

Suddenly  they  heard  shouts  of  human  beings  and  bleatings 
and  cries  of  animals,  startling  in  the  stillness,  and  there  ap- 
peared around  a  curve  in  the  road  two  ragged  Kabyle  shep- 
herds brandishing  their  knotted  sticks  and  driving  a  flock 
of  black  and  white  goats,  which  were  running  wildly  from 
one  side  of  the  road  to  the  other  and  plunging  down  or 
climbing  up  where  there  appeared  to  be  no  foothold  at  all, 
as  though  they  wished  to  break  their  necks  to  spite  the  shep- 
herds. The  car  had  now  reached  the  highest  altitude,  six 
thousand  feet.  It  is  eight  kilometres  through  the  pass,  and 
here  begins  the  descent.  Down  and  down  went  the  car, 
guided  by  the  careful  chauffeur,  who  held  it  back  by  the 
engine,  thus  saving  the  brakes,  which  heat  terribly  on  such 
grades.  Again  they  ran  through  tunnels  and  skirted  the 
edges  of  black  gorges  and  wild  ravines.  Gradually  the 
Kabyle  villages  came  again  into  sight,  and  then  plantations 
of  olives  and  of  figs,  and  small  plats  of  maize.  Again  Llella 
Khadidja  showed  her  white  head,  having  cast  her  veil  of 
clouds  aside,  as  if  to  say  good-bye  to  the  voyagers. 

It  was  late  noon  when  the  travellers  reached  Fort  Michelet 
and  went  into  the  little  hotel  for  luncheon.  As  they  ran 
down  to  Fort  National,  the  serrated  range  of  the  Djurdjura 
loomed  black  at  first,  and  then  the  clouds  dropped  a  mist  of 
rain  which  blotted  it  all  out.  They  stopped  at  Tizi-Ouzu 
for  a  meal  of  gasoline  for  the  faithful  and  hard-worked  car, 
and  then  pushed  on  to  Algiers  in  the  falling  rain,  though  the 
enterprising  landlord  advised  them  to  remain  for  the  night 
at  his  "  so  comfortable  and  luxurious  hotel  and  thus  avoid 
bad  colds.'' 

It  was  after  dark  when  the  travellers  came  in  sight  of  the 
twinkling  lights  of  the  harbor  of  Algiers  and  ran  up  to 
Mustapha  Superieur,  stopping  at  the  entrance  of  that  prince 
of  hotels,  which,  however,  looked  dark  and  inhospitable.  The 
polite  manager  came  out  to  say,  sorrowfully,  that  the  hotel 

[  432  ] 


BACK    TO    ALGIERS 

was  now  closed  for  the  season.  But  he  hastened  to  add,  as 
he  saw  their  disappointed  faces,  that  a  hotel  close  by  kept 
its  arms  open  the  year  around  for  wandering  and  homeless 
travellers,  so  they  betook  themselves  to  this  and  its  genial 
proprietor  and  his  kindly  wife  had  pity  on  the  wet  and 
weary  Motorists  and  made  them  very  comfortable  indeed. 

When  the  travellers  went  the  next  day  to  wander  around 
the  city  for  a  last  look,  they  found  that  the  winter  birds  had 
flown  to  cooler  climes,  foolish  birds!  for  the  gardens  of  Mus- 
tapha  Superieur  were  more  beautiful  and  fragrant  now  than 
ever ;  vines  tumbled  over  the  walls  in  greater  luxuriance,  and 
rose-bushes  were  bursting  with  crimson,  pink,  and  white 
bloom.  Through  the  gates  —  now  oftener  left  open  —  of  white 
villas,  they  caught  sight  of  delicious  green  depths;  the  shade 
of  the  graceful  pepper-trees  and  the  sycamore  and  ficus  trees, 
casting  lovely  etched  patterns  on  the  avenues,  was  grateful; 
and  when  the  sea  was  visible  below  the  green  foliage,  it  was 
more  richly  blue  than  ever. 

But  when  they  went  down  to  the  harbor  they  did  not  miss 
the  winter  birds.  Hanging  over  the  balustrade  and  looking 
down  on  the  busy  freight-boats  and  at  the  big  German  vessel 
(from  which  a  crowd  of  eager  tourists  was  pouring  down 
the  ladder  onto  the  pontoons)  was  the  same  motley  throng. 
Loitering  along  the  boulevards  and  through  the  Rue  Bab 
Azoun  were  more  Arab  dandies  than  ever,  in  their  delicately 
colored  pink,  blue,  and  gray  burnouses.  Patriarchal  sheiks, 
in  whitest  of  hdiks,  brushed  against  black  Soudanese  porters 
wearing  nothing  but  gandouras  of  sacking,  and  toiling  under 
their  heavy  burdens  in  the  hot  sun.  The  balloon-trousered 
Arab  women,  wrapped  closely  in  their  white  mantles,  scurried 
through  the  Place  du  Gouvernement,  which  was  seething,  as 
always,  with  a  tumultuous  throng;  the  gayly  uniformed  of- 
ficers of  the  Tirailleurs,  the  Spahis,  and  the  Chasseurs  d^Af- 
rique  looked  out  from  the  cool  retreat  of  the  cafes  while 
sipping  their  coffee  or  absinth,  ogling  any  good-looking 
woman  who  might  pass  near  the  little  tables;  or  spurning 
the  gamins  with  their  blacking-brushes  and  the  tattered  beg- 

[433] 


A  MOTOR  FLIGHT 

gars  holding  out  their  dirty  hands  and  crying,  '*  Meskin, 
meskin!  '* 

A  day  or  two  later  the  ''  Charles  Roux  "  was  slipping  off 
her  big  cables  preparatory  to  departure.  Our  Motorists  stood 
on  the  deck  leaning  against  the  rail,  watching  the  busy  tumult 
on  the  quay.  It  was  hot  noon,  and  Algiers,  rising  to  the  sky 
line  in  white  terraces,  with  the  green  hills  on  each  side,  looked 
truly,  according  to  the  Arab  saying,  like  "  a  diamond  in  an 
emerald  frame. '  *  The  Two,  occupied  with  their  own  thoughts, 
were  silent  for  a  while;  then  the  Commander  sighed  regret- 
fully and  exclaimed, 

*  *  Well,  it  is  all  past  —  those  long,  delightful  rides  on  per- 
fect roads,  over  the  mountains  with  glorious  scenery  of  green 
valleys  and  snow-capped  peaks,  across  the  Desert,  by  curious 
villages  and  always  among  a  strange  and  picturesque  people. 
I  would  begin  the  trip  over  again,  to-morrow,  if  I  could!  " 

The  Other-one  echoed  the  sigh. 

'  *  And  so  would  I,  were  it  possible !  It  has  been,  indeed, 
an  unusual  and  a  glorious  trip.  AVhat  a  country  for  an  artist 
to  visit!  Such  color  in  tones  and  half-tones;  such  subtle 
gradations  in  tints  of  which  he  never  dreamed  before,  in  the 
color  on  the  mountains  in  early  morning  and  in  the  sunset 
glow  at  night,  in  the  sands  of  the  Desert,  in  the  creams,  blues, 
reds,  and  yellows  of  the  costumes  of  the  Bedouin  women  and 
in  the  azure  and  turquoise  of  this  ever-changing  sea !  ' ' 

"And  for  the  archaeologist,"  added  the  Commander, 
' '  what  interesting  ruins  of  Roman  times,  of  temples,  aque- 
ducts, baths,  cisterns,  arches,  and  columns!  But  let  him 
take  the  trip  in  a  good  automobile,  and  above  all  with  an  ex- 
cellent chauffeur !  ' ' 

"I  am  afraid,'*  pursued  the  Other-one  ''that  a  fashion- 
able lady  who  took  the  fancy  to  motor  in  North  Africa  would 
die  of  disgust  at  some  of  the  hotels  in  the  by-places.  How- 
ever, she  might  be  happy,  perhaps,  in  showing  off  her  fine 
clothes  at  the  big  caravansaries  in  Algiers,  Biskra,  or  Tunis. 
But  after  all,  when  I  think  back,  the  inconveniences  and  poor 


[434 


BACK    TO    ALGIERS 

inns  count  for  little  in  the  memories  of  this  glorious  trip.  I 
have  forgotten  the  annoyances  already.*' 

The  steamer  was  sliding  swiftly  out  of  the  harbor,  and 
white  Algiers  was  sinking  down  as  the  green  hills  rose  up 
around  it.    The  Commander  began  again : 

*'  And  the  French  administration  in  Africa  —  how  marvel- 
lous it  is  when  you  think  that  for  several  centuries  before 
they  came  to  Africa  this  country  had  been  suffering  from  the 
worst  sort  of  government ;  that  there  were  no  roads  that  could 
be  called  such,  no  schools,  no  justice,  and  no  agriculture  to 
speak  of!  Now,  the  splendid  roads,  reaching  all  parts  of  the 
mountains  and  deserts;  the  fair  system  of  railroads;  the 
thousands  of  acres  of  vines,  the  thousands  of  date-palms  and 
the  millions  of  olive-trees  they  have  planted;  the  hundreds 
of  artesian  wells  they  have  sunk;  the  paternal  interest  they 
take  in  the  people  in  giving  them  schools  and  a  fair  and  just 
taxation,  and  in  many  other  ways  looking  after  their  interests 
—  all  this  makes  the  French  occupation  and  its  results  the 
best  colonization  scheme  yet  devised.** 

The  Two  fell  into  silence,  and  the  boat  steamed  swiftly 
on  her  way.  At  last  only  the  outlines  of  the  Atlas  Mountains 
were  to  be  seen  in  a  blue  haze,  and  the  snow  peaks  of  the 
Djurdjura  shining  in  the  afternoon  sun.  Soon  even  these 
faded  from  sight.  There  was  nothing  but  the  azure  sea 
stretching  away  on  every  hand ;  and  their  Motor  Flight 
through  fascinating  Algeria  and  Tunisia  became  a  delightful 
memory. 


THB  END 


INDEX 


Abd-el-Kadir,  93 

Abd-el-Ouadites,  the,  131 

Abd-er-Bahman-bou-Kobrin,  tomb 
of,  47-49 

Abou  el  Hassen  AH,  the  Black 
Sultan,  134 

Abou-Zemaa-el-Beloui,  one  of  the 
barbers  of  Mohammed,  420,  421 ; 
mosque  of,  420 

Aboul  Hassan,  Mosque  of,  132, 
134 

Abundance,  statue  of,  370 

Admiralty,  at  Algiers,  58 

Affreville,  95,  169 

Aflfroun,  169 

Aglabites,  cisterns  of,  420 

Ahmed  Ben  Yussuf,  Sidi,  93 

Ain-Beida,  Mosque  of,  128;  town 
of,  212,  218,  295-297 

Ain-Draham,  310,  311 

Ain  Tounga,  317 

Aissa-ben-SIiman,  sheik  of  Beni- 
Isguen,  163,  164 

Aissaouas,  sect  of,  422 

Alaoui  Museum,  347-350 

Alfa  grass,  17,  143,  380 

Algeria,  natural  divisions  of,  17; 
civic  divisions  of,  277;  part 
played  in  French  government, 
277;  power  of  kaids  and  sheiks 
of,  278;  military  force  of,  278, 
279;  advantages  from  France, 
279;  boundary  between  Tunisia, 
310 

Algiers,  siege  of,  by  British  and 
Dutch,  1816,  6;  French  posses- 
sion of,  6,  191;  museum  of,  52- 
54;   last  look  of,  433-435 

Almohades,  the,  131 

Amar-Abbada,  Mosque  of,  421 


Aokos,  Cape,  193,  198 

Aqttae  Calidae,  91 

Arabs,  conquerors  of  North  Africa, 

5 
Arba,  town  of,  103 
Architecture,  Moorish,  examples  of, 

36,  54 ;  finest  in  Tlemcen,  130 
Ariana,  342,  375,  376;  promenade 

of  Jewesses  at,  377 
Auribeau,  303 
Asphodel,  the,  95,  96 
Atlas  Mountains,  11,  94,  97 
Augustus,  355 
Aumale,  town  of,  109 
AurSs    Mountains,    218,    219,    228, 

242,  247,  250,  281,  293,  294 
Automobile,    1;    loading    on    ship, 

2;    unloading,    19,   20;    troubles 

with,  285-291 
Azaga,  town  of,  188 


Bab-Azoun,   Rue,   Algiers,    8,   25, 

26 
Bab-el-Djazira,  a  quarter  of  Tunis, 

330 
Bab-el-Khamis,  great  gate  of,  138 
Bab-el-Oued,  Rue,  Algiers,   8,    25, 

26 
Bab-Souika,    a    quarter    of    Tunis, 

330,  341 
Babouche,  town  of,  429 
Bach-agha,  of  Laghouat,  149,  150 
Bagrada,  river,  see  Mcdjerda 
Bamboo,  51 

Bardo,  the,  of  Tunis,  346,  347 
Baths  of  King  Solomon,  91 
Batna,   Mountains,  218;    town  of, 

228,  291 
Bedouins,  141,  249,  253,  286-289; 

tents  of,  288  j  313 


[437] 


INDEX 


Beggars,  in  Algiers,  38,  39,  44 
Beja,  310,  311,  316,  317 
Bekalta,  village  of,  407 
Belisarius,   356 

Belvedere  Park  in  Tunis,  345 
Benevent,  see  Landon  Gardens 
Ben-Merzog,   river,    212 
Beni-Chougran,   Mountains,  128 
Beni-Isguen,  154,  162-165 
Benni  Yenni,   183 
Berbers,  see  Kabyles 
Berkani,  tombs  of  the,  85 
Berrian,   154 
Berrouaghia,   142 
Birkadem,  town  of,  55,  56 
Biskra,    100,    156,    172,    228,    231- 

239,  242-249,  282-284,  296 
Bizerte,   329 

Blida,  town  of,  98,  99,  169 
Boghari,   142 
Bone,   293,   304-307 
Bordj-Djedid,       365;       ruins       of 

cisterns  at,  365,  366 
Botanical     Garden,     Algiers,     see 

Jardin  d'Essai 
Bou-Kornein,     Mount,     340,     346, 

369 
Bou-Medine,  town  of,  134;  mosque 

of,   134-137 
Bou-Noura,  town  of,  164 
Bou  Saada,  100,  148;  meaning  of, 

101;   arrival  at,  109;  sights  of, 

112-118 
Boufarik,   141 
Bougainvillea  vine,  102,  238 
Bougie,     17,     189-193,     198,     199, 

429,  430 
Bourmont,  General,  124 
Bourde,  P.,  quoted,  387 
Bouzarea,    hills    of,    11;    highest 

point  of  Algiers,  31 
Bugeaud,  Marshal,  128 
Bulla  Regia,  310 
Bureau    des    A  f  aires    Indigenes, 

266,    269,   392,    398;    Command- 
ant of,  262,  273,  276 
Bureau  of  the  Marine,  58 
Bureaux  Arabes,  277 


Butler,  Allan,  quoted,  359 
Byrsa,  hill  of  Carthage,  354,  360 
Byzantines,     occupation     of     Car- 
thage, 356 


Caesar,  355,  405,  407 
Caesarea,  ancient,  127 
Cafes,  in  Algiers,   16,  61,   62;   in 

Tunis,  337 
Calceus  Herculis,  229 
Camels,    first    sight    of,    117;    in 

caravan,      199,      200;      on     the 

desert,  251,  252,  255,   294 
Canal,  from  Tunis  to  the  sea,  353 
Caquat,   Rene,    author    of   a   work 

on   the  ancient   cities   of  North 

Africa,  81 
Caracalla,     arch     of,     in  Tebessa, 

214 
Caravansaries,   122 
Carbon,  Cape,  198 
Carbueca,  Colonel,  227 
Carthage,  329,   339,   346;    ancient, 

354-358;   in  modern  times,   357- 

375;     Punic     remains     at,     363, 

366,     367;     Great    Basilica    of, 

363-365;    Museum   at,   370-374 
Castiglione,   79,   124 
Catacombs,    Christian,    at    Sousse, 

411 
Cato,  the  Elder,  355 
Cavallo,  Cape,  195,  197 
Caxine,  Cape,  lighthouse  of,  76 
Celestis,  Temple  of,  321 
Cemeteries,    Arab,    7,    40-42;     of 

Beleourt,  44-49;   of  Beni-Isguen, 

165 
Chabet-el-Akra,  199,  200 
Chalybeate    spring,    at     Hammam 

R'hira,  90 
Charles      V,      expedition      against 

Algiers,  66;  against  Tunis,  329; 

at  Goletta,  353 
Charles  X,  of  France,  124 
Chasseurs     d'Afrique,     278,     326; 

birds   named  after,  403 
Chateau  d'lf,  2 


[433] 


INDEX 


Chaugarnier,  Gen.,   93 

Chawia,     people     of     the     Aur^ 

Mountains,  219 
Chedaker,  River,  301 
Ch61ia,  Mount,  224,  293 
Ch61if,   Plain,   92;    River,    17,   95, 

127,  142 
Chenoua,  Mount,  32,  78,  79,  124; 

rock  used  for  building,  86,  125 
Cherchel,  83;   Roman  aqueduct  to, 

85;   the  town  of,  85,  125,  127, 

204 
Chiffa,  Gorge  of  the,  32,  78,  97, 

98,  141 
Chikli,  old  building  at  Lake  Tunis, 

352 
Chotts,  in  the  desert,  250,  390 
Cirta,  ancient,  see  Constantine 
*'Cit7  of  God,  The,'*  St.  Augus- 
tine's, 304,  306 
Clocks,  always   found   in  mosques, 

24;   in  minaret  at  Miliana,  93; 

in  Tlemcen,  131 
Coffee,  house,  Arab,  61,  62;  Turk- 
ish, 62 
Col  de  Tirourda,  430 
Colin,  M.,  a  French  engineer,  366 
College  Museum,  at  Carthage,  370- 

374 
Company  of  the  Oued  Rir,  258 
**Comte  de  Monte  Cristo,'*  3 
"Confessions"  of  St.   Augustine, 

304,  306 
Constantine,  Emperor,  128,  206 
Constantine,    town    of,    170,    177, 

201,   203-212;    fortress  of,   205 
Cork-trees,  175 

Cornelia  Valentina  Tuceiana,   220 
Corniche  Road,  191 
Corsica,  granite  from,  306 
Costumes,  of  Arabs,  14;  of  Arab 

women,  15;  of  dragomen,  20,  21 
Cous-cous,  national  dish  of  Arabs, 

152,  166,  185,  288 
Croisette,  Cape,  3 
Custom-house,   at    La   Calle,    308; 

Tunisian,  310 


Damous-el-Karita,     Church     of, 

357,  361,  363-365 
Dar-el-Bey,  Tunis,   338,   339 
Date   culture,   in   the   desert,   258, 

259 
Delattre,  Rev.  P^re,  356,  363,  365. 

367 
Dellys,  17 
Deys,    or    governors,    of    Algiers, 

old   palace  of,   7,  42;    story   of 

the  last   Dey,  43 
Dido,   Queen,   354 
Djama,  Arabic  for  mosque,  21 
Djama-el-Djedid,   see   Pecherie 
Djama-el-Kebir,     Mosque     of,     7 '- 

description   of,   23,   24 
Djelfa,  town  of,  147,  148,  166 
Djem,  Colosseum  of,  382-384 
Djemaa,  Oued,  102,  103 
Djidjelli,  191,  196,  197,  199,  429, 

430 
Djurdjura  Mountains,  11,  17,  179, 

181,  431 
Domini,  heroine  of  Hichens'  **The 

Garden  of  Allah,"  239,  429 
Dougga,    town    of,    310,    317-324, 

427 
Dragoman,  Arab  guide,  20,  21 
Dufour,  Mr.,  305 
Dumas,  Alexander,  2 


Edougii,  Mount,  304,  306 

El-Ateuf,   154 

El  Amri,  village  of,  260 

El  Bahira,  Lake,  330 

El    Barota,    sacred    well    of,    at 

Kairouan,  418 
El  Eubbad,  town  of,  134,  135 
El-Had,  Oued,  107 
El  Hadj    Ahmed,   207-211;    palace 

of,  207-209 
El  Kantara,  the  **  gateway  of  the 

desert,"  229,  230,  232,  283,  290 
El  Kebir,  Mosque  of,  132 
El  Milia,  forest  at,  429,  430 


[439 


INDEX 


El  Ourit  Cascades,  129 

El     Zitouna,     Grand     Mosque    of 

Tunis,  332 
Enfidaville,  381 
Esparto  grass,  see  alfa 
Eucalyptus-trees,   175,   176,  303 


Falguiere,  the  sculptor,  231 

Ferdinand,  the  Catholic,  5 

Fermantou,  201 

Fete  days,  in  Tlemcen,  132 

Fetzara,  Lake,  303 

Fez,  shop  of  the,  335 

Flavius  Maximus,  227 

Forests,  hunting  in,  90;  of  Leb- 
anon cedar,  142;  of  Bou-Hini, 
188;  of  El  Milia,  429 

Fort  Michelet,  170,  181,  432 

Fort  National,  170,  179,  180,  182, 
432 

Foum-es-Sahara,  **  mouth  of  the 
desert,"  229 

Francis   Eegis,   Father,   76 

Fromentin,  the  painter,  66,  143, 
146 

Fruits,  92 

G 

Gabes,  391,  397 

** Garden    of    Allah,    the,*'    228, 

Genseric,  the  Vandal,  356 
Geronimo,     the     Arab     Christian 

martyr,  53;   tomb  of,  71 
Ghardaia,    122;    principal    city    of 

Mozabites,   151,  154;    sights  of, 

155-162,  165 
Ghiberti,    136 
Gorge  of  Death,  199 
Goums,   native   soldiery,    278,    279 
Gouraya,    Mount,    189,    190,    193, 

198 
Grand    Cascades,    Hammam    Mes- 

koutine,  297,  298 
Grandes  Falaises,  the,  194 
Greeks,    Byzantine,    conquerors    of 

North    Africa,    5;     ancient    in- 
fluences, 370 


Guelma,  297,  302 

Guelt-es-Stel,      caravansary,      144, 

166 
Guerrara,  154 
Guyotville,  76    . 


Hadramentum,        ancient,        see 

Sousse 
Haik,  the,   14 

Halfaouine,  Place,   Tunis,   342 
Halouat,  a  sweetmeat,  133 
Hammam  Lif,  340 
Hammam    Meskoutine,     293,    297- 

302;    petrified    springs    at,    297- 

300;  legend  of,  300,  301 
Hammam    R'hira,    83;     overnight 

stay  at,  88-91 
Hammamet,  town  of,  426,  427 
Hannibal,  354,   355,  381,  404;    at 

Sousse,  408 
Harrach,  Oued,  102 
Hasdrubal,   205,  369 
High  Plateaux,  the,   17 
Hippone,   ancient,   see  Bone 
Horses,  Arabian,  106,  261 
Houris,  23,  45,  244,  245 
Hussein  Dey,  169 


Igarghur,  River,  258 

Islamism,     establishment     of,     in 

North  Africa,  5 
d'Isly,  Rue,  in  Algiers,  26 
Isser  River,  142,  177 


JARDIN  d'Essai,  8,  50 

Jardin  Marengo,  8 

Jewellery,  Kabyle,  30 

Jews,  in  Algeria,  19;  in  Constan- 

tine,  203;   in  Ariana,  377,  378 
John  of  Austria,  353 
Juba  II,  story  of,  82,  83;  capital 

at  Cherchel,  85;   tomb  of,  124; 

204,  407 
Jules  Ferry,  Avenue,   Tunis,   325- 

328 


[440 


INDEX 


Julia  Donna,  mother  of  Caracalla, 

214 
Jupiter     Capitolinus,     temple     of, 

222 
Justinian,  Emperor,  214,  223,  356 


Kabyles,  earliest  historical  in- 
habitants of  Algeria,  5,  19; 
jewellery  of,  30;  history  of,  171, 
172;  traits  of,  173,  174,  183, 
184;  dwelUngs  of,  185,  186; 
women  of,  187,  188;  guide,  206; 
villages  of,  431 

Kabylia,  Great,  179,  191;  Little, 
192 

Kahar,   Mount,  140 

Kahenna,  a  famous  Berber  queen, 
383,   384 

Kairouan,  the  ** sacred  city"  of 
Tunisia,  330,  405,  416;  history 
of,  417;  sights  of,  418-424 

Kasha,  the  palace  of  the  deys,  7, 
42;   description  of,  43 

Kasr-Menara,  Roman  tomb,  380 

Kbour-el-Abbas,  town  of,   230 

Kebir,  mosque  of,  Kairouan,  422- 
424 

Kellogg,  Clara  Louise,  362 

Khair-ed-Din,  59,  329 

Khenchella,  218,  295 

Khrekar,  town  of,  230 

Khroumirs,  tribe  of,  329 

Kilometre,    English    equivalent,    5 

Kleb,  river,  212 

Koran,  illuminated,  8;  used  in 
schools,  402 

Kroumiri,  tribe  of,  310 


La  Calle,  town  of,  307-309,  429 
La  Goletta,  330,  351-353 
La  Malga,  great  cisterns  at,  361 
La  Manouba,  town  of,  427 
Laghouat,  122,  148-151,  166 
Lakdaars,  tribe  of,  149 


Lambessa,    old    Boman   town,    54, 

226-228 
Landon,  Count,  429 
Landon    Gardens,    in  Biskra,    233, 
238,   247,  283;   in  Philippeville, 
429 
Lavigerie,   Cardinal,   11,    233,   234, 
356,  377;  statue  of,  231;  monu- 
ment of,  in  Carthage,  374 
Le  Kef,  town  of,  427,  428 
Lebanon  cedar,  142,  168,  169 
Llelle   Khadija,   Mount,   181,    183, 

431 
Locusts,  as  food,  252,  269 
Luray,  Virginia,  cave  at,  195 
Lyon,  Rue   du,  Algiers,   102 

M 

Maison  Carree,  102,  174 

Malek,  great  Arab  teacher,  66 

Mammoth  Cave,  195 

Mansoura,  137-139;  mosque  of, 
138,  139;  204 

Mansourah,  town  of,  194 

Marcus  Plotius  Faustus,  220 

Marengo,  town  at  west  end  of 
Mitidja  Plain,  87 

Margueritte,  town  of,  92 

Marine,  the  European  quarter  of 
Tunis,   330 

Market,  of  Bou  Saada,  116,  117; 
of  Ghardaia,  155,  156;  of  Beni- 
Isguen,  163;  of  M^nerville,  176; 
of  Biskra,  235-237;  of  Toug- 
gourt,  266,  267;  of  Sfax,  389; 
at  Sousse,  409,  410 

Marriage,  among  Arabs,  41;  po- 
lygamy, 41;  a  wedding  recep- 
tion, 414,  415 

Marseilles,  embarking  at,  2 

Mascara,  town  of,  128 

Massenissa,  204-206,  355 

Matameur,  village  of,  391 

Matmatas,  a  tribe  of  Troglodytes, 
391;    village  of,   397-403 

Mecca,  pilgrims  from,  63;  pray- 
ers said  towards,  187;  head- 
gear   of    pilgrims    from,    387; 


[441] 


INDEX 


Mecca  —  Continued 

efScacy   of   pilgrimage   to,   417; 

sacred  well  of,  418 
Mechouar,  citadel  of  Tlemcen,  131 
Medea,  town  of,  97,  142 
M^denine,  391-395 
Medersa,  college  of,  135 
Medersa-et-Tsalibia,  mosque  of,  37 
Medijiz-el-Bab,  316,  317,  427 
Medina,    the    native     quarter     of 

Tunis,  328,  330 
Mediterranean  Sea,  354,  355 
Medjerda,   River,   316,  352,  354 
Mehdia,  404-406 
Melika,  162,  164 
Melmir,  Chott,  250,  281 
Menerville,  17,  170,  176 
Metlili,  154 
Mihrab,   in   the    Mosque  of  Aboul 

Hassan,  133 
Miliana,  88,  92,  168;   stay  at,  93, 

94 
Minerva,   Temple   of,    at   Tebessa, 

214 
Mines,  of  hematite,  92,  93;   lead, 

340 
Mirages  in  the  desert,  390 
Mitidja,  plain  of,  17,  32,  169 
Mohammed-ed-Cherif,    mosque    of, 

66 
Monastir,  404,  407 
Monkeys,  97,  98,  142 
Montcalm,  296 

Moors,  driven  from  Spain,  5;  ad- 
vanced civilization  of,  19 
Moslems,   23 

Mourdjadjs,   Mount,   140 
Mozabites,    151,   153,    159;    habits 

and  dwellings   of,   160-162;    236 
Mraier,   caravansary  of,   246,   256- 

258,  260,  273-276,  280 
Muezzin,  the,  201 
Mustapha,  8;  Superieur,  32;  hotel 

at,  29;  Bay  of,  56,  432 
Mya,  Eiver,  258 
Mzabs,    the,    122,    123;    see    also 

Mozabites 


N 


Nabeul,  town  of,  426,  427 
National   Assembly,   French,    277 
National,  Eue,  Constantino,   203 
Negroes,  in  Algeria,  19;  in  Biskra, 

234,  235,  238 
Nemours,    Place,   Constantine,   203 
Nomads,  tents  of,  118,  212;   visit 

to,   212,   213 
Normans,  at  Mehdia,  405 
Notre  Dame  d'Afrique,  11,  33 
Notre  Dame  de  la  Garde,  church 

of,   2 
Numidia,  ancient,  history  of,  205 


OCTAVIUS,   83 
Oiseaux,  Lac  des,  307 
Olive-trees,   103,  128,  382,   386 
Oran,  town  of,  139,  140 
d 'Orleans,  Due,  statue  of,  16 
Orleansville,  123,   127,   128 
Ouarsenis  Mountains,   92,   94,   166 
Ouargla,  153 
Oubeira,  Lake,  307 
Oudna,  mosaic  from,  348 
Ouled  Nail  Mountains,  146,  147 
Ouled     Nails,     57;      dancing-girls, 
100,  113-116,  243-245,  271,  272 


"Pagoda  Fig-trees'*  see  Eubber 
trees 

Palace,  of  Governor  of  Algeria, 
28,  36;  of  Archbishop,  36,  71, 
72;  winter,  of  Governor,  54,  55, 
71;  in  Constantine,  207;  of  bey 
of  Tunis,  350,  351 

Palestro,    177 

Palms,  dwarf,  17,  18,  77,  177; 
African  and  Japanese,  50;  as 
exports,  51 

Pecherie,  Mosque  of,  8;  descrip- 
tion of,  16,  20,  21;  interior,  22; 
Koran  of,  22 

Penon,  the  island  of,  8,  75;  the 
lighthouse  of,  58,  59 


[442] 


INDEX 


Perfumes,  Oriental,  333,  334 

Philippeville,  429 

Pisa,  cathedral  at,  356 

Pistachio-trees,   143 

Place  de  I'Eglise,  Miliana,  93 

Place    du    Gouvernement,    Algiers, 

8,  16 
Place  de  la  R^publique,  8 
Planier,  Isle  of,  3 
PomSgue,  island  of,  2 
Pompey,    355,  405,   407 
Porte  de  France,  or  Old  Sea  Gate, 

of  Tunis,  327,  330,  331 
Possidius,  born  at  Guelma,  302 
Pottery,   Kabyle,    184;    of    Tunis, 

342 ;  of  Nabeul,  427 
Prickly  pear,  177 
Publius    Marcius   Quadratus,   320 
Punic-Lybic    Monument,    Dougga, 

321-323 
Punic  Wars,  355,  369 
Pygmalion,  brother  of  Dido,  354 


Kahmania,  Beligions  order  of,  48 

Reclus,  quoted,  229 

Bessas,  Mount,  340,  346,  369 

Rhar-Adim,  ''The  Marvellous 
Grotto,"  195 

Roads,  good,  in  Algeria,  4,  277 
construction  of,  4,  5;  cost,  5 
desert,   277 

Roman  remains,  at  Cherchel,  85 
at  Hammam  R  'hlra,  91 ;  at 
Bougie,  191;  at  Mansurah,  194: 
at  S6tif,  201;  at  Timgad,  219 
224;  at  Lambessa,  227,  228 
at  Guelma,  302;  at  B6ne,  304 
305;  at  BuUia  Regia,  312-315 
at  Dougga,  319-323;  at  Car- 
thage, 357 

Romans,  conquerors  of  North 
Africa,  5;  relics  of,  52,  53; 
votive  offerings,  54 

Rome,  Colosseum  of,  359 

Bonde  Point e  des  Ci'dres,  169 

Rouaras,    tribe    of,    260,    262,    266 

Rubber-trees,  India,  51 


Rugs,  weaving  of,  150;  of  Kairo- 

uan,  419 
Ruisseau  des  Singes,  98,   142 
Rummel,  River,   203,   204,   210 
Ruspina,  ancient,  see  Monastir 

S 

Sabbath,  Mohammedan,   7 
Saddles,  shop  of,  335 
Saf-Saf  River,  129 
Sahara   Desert,   17;   entrance  into, 
229,    231;    trip    over    to    Toug- 
gourt,  249-265 ;  sunset  over,  269, 
270;    divisions  of,   281 
Sahari,  Mount,  146 
Sahel,  Plain  of  the,  17,  32;   fer- 
tility of,  80 
St.    Augustine,    302;    basilica    of, 
304;   work  in  Bdne,  304;  monu- 
ment to,  305,  306;  in  Carthage, 
356 
St.  Cyprian,  361 
St.  Cyr,  rocks  of,  3 
St.    Eugene,    on    Pointe    Pescade, 
church    of,    11;    village    of,    33, 
123 
St.  F^licitas,  356,  359,  360 
St.  Louis,  at  Carthage,  356,  368, 

376;    cathedral  of,  357,  375 
St.  Perpetua,   356,  359,  360,  365 
St.  Peter,  basilica  of,  428 
St.  Philippe,  Cathedral  of,  36 
St.    Salsa,    Church    of,    85,    125; 

story  of,  126,  127 
St.  Vincent  de  Paul,  353 
Sakomody,  hamlet  of,  106 
Salah  Bey,  mosque  of,  in  Constan- 

tine,  206,  207 
Salt  Mountain,  146,  147 
Samma,  Oued,  107 
Scipio,  355,  369,  381 
Sebaou  River,  178,  187 
Sebka-es-Sedjoumi,    Lake,    330 
Sebka    of    Moknine,   jewellery    of, 

407 
Selene,  daughter  of  Cleopatra,  83 
Septimus    Severus,    214;    arch    of, 
at  Lambessa,  228 


[443] 


INDEX 


Service    des    Af  aires    Indigenes, 

277,   279 
Setif,   201 

Seven  Sleepers,  Gorge  of  the,  223 
Seybouse,  Eiver,  303,  307 
Sfax,    385-390;    history    of,    386; 

sponge  industry  of,  386 
Shops,   in   Algiers,    26;    in   n^'tive 

quarter,  60;  in  Bougie,  191 
Sicily,  355 
Sidi-Abd-er-Kahman,  Mosque  tomb 

of,  7,  37,  68-70 
Sidi-Abdullah,  mosque   of,  66 
Sidi-Abid-el-Gu6riane,      tomb      of, 

418 
Sidi-bel-Abbas,  128 
Sidi-ben-Ahrous,   Mosque   of,   338 
Sidi-ben-Ziad,  Mosque  of,   338 
Sidi-bou-Said,    339,    368,    375 
Sidi-el-Haloni,  Mosque  of,  133,  134 
Sidi  Ferrueh,  32,  77,  123 
Sidi  Mahrez,  Mosque  of,  342 
Sidi  Mecid,  204 
Sidi-Okba,  Eeligious  order  of,  48; 

town    of,    239-242;    mosque    of, 

240,   241;    vision    of    the    saint, 

423,  424 
Sila,    noted    for   megalithic    monu- 
ments, 212 
Skylarks,  202,  294 
Slave  Market,  of  Tunis,  336 
Snake-charmers,  421 
SocietS  Franco-Africaine,  381 
Solomon,   a  general   of  Justinian, 

214 
Sophonisba,  204,  205 
Soudane,  Oued,  154 
Souk-el-Arba,  316,  428 
Soulcs,  of  Tunis,  330-338,  344,  345 
Soumman,  valley  of  the,  189,  431 
Sousse,    348,    349,    355,    381,    382, 

407-415,  425,  426 
Spahis,  native  cavalry,  54,  63,  278, 

326 
Spanish,  in  Algeria,  19 
Sponge  fisheries,  at  Sfax,   386 
Staou^le,  76,  77,  123 

[444] 


Storks,  as  omens  of  luck,  96;  prev- 
alence of,  202 

Story-teller,  Arab,  267 

Strelitza,  banana  tree,  51;  Stre- 
litza  Begina,  51 

''Summer  on  the  Sahara,"  143 

Syphax,  205 


Tabarca,  310,  329 

Tablot,  town  of,  106 

Tachfin,  Sultan  of  Tlemcen,  24 

Takitount,  200 

Tamit,   goddess   of   Carthaginians, 

321,    371 
Tangerine    oranges,   exported,   51 
Taourirt  Amokrane,   182 
Taparura,  ancient,  see  Sfax 
T6bessa,  213-218;  history  of,  213; 

basilica  of,  215-217 
Teboursouk,  318,  427 
Tell,   the,  17,   229 
Telrempt,    caravansary,    151,    152, 

165 
Ten6s,   123,    127 
Teniet-el-Had,  142,   166,   167 
Testour,  village  of,  317 
Thamugadi,  see  Timgad 
Thapsus,  victory  of  Csesar  at  ,  405 

407 
Theveste,  ancient,  see  Tebessa 
Thignicia,  ancient,  see  Ain  Tounga 
Thysdrus,  ancient,  see  Djem 
Tiaret,  153 

Tiberius,  Emperor,   91 
''Tiger  or  Leopard  Gateway,"  58 
Timgad,  old  Koman  town,  54,  218- 

225;    history  of,   221,   222,  293, 

296 
Tipaza,  ruins  of,  83,  85,  124,  125; 

Christian   religion   in,   126 
Tirailleurs  Indigenes,  278,  326 
Tizi-Ouzu,  170,  178,  179 
Tlemcen,  122,  129-137,  139 
Tleta  Biban,  Mosque  of,  419,  420 
Tomb  of  the  Christian,  32,  80,  81, 

88,  124,  323;  legends  of,  82;  in- 
terior  of,   84 


INDEX 


Tomheau  de  la,  Neige,  189 
Touaregs,  tribe  of,  236,  245,  266 
Touggourt,   245,  260,  265-272 
Trajan,  Emperor,  214;  arch  of,  at 

Timgad,   221,   293 
Trappists,  monastery,  76 
Treaty,  between  United  States  and 

Algiers,  6 
Troglodytes,    398-403;    country    of 

the,   379-403 
Tuasin,  tribe  of  Berbers,  392 
Tunis,    310,    324-328;    history    of, 

329;     characteristics     of,     329; 

sights  of,  340-352 
Tunis,  Lake  of,  352 
Turks,    activities    in    Constantine, 

206;  in  Tunis,  329 


Utica,  329 


Valee,  Marshal,  209 
Valley  of  the  Consuls,  75 
Vandals,     conquerors      of     North 

Africa,  5;   Siege  of  Bdne,  304; 

in  Carthage,  356 


Verdeau,  Monsieur,  of  the  Jardin 

d'Essai,   50,  51 
Victory,  statue  of,  370 
Vineyards,   18,  79,  142,  189,   193 
Virgil,  mosaic  portrait  of,  349 

W 

Wheat,  principal  grain  in  Algeria, 

18 
Women,  of  Tunis,  327,  328,  332    ' 

Y 

Yakotjb  el  Mansour,  Sultan,  134, 
137-139 


Zaccar,   Mount,   88,   91,  92,   168; 

water   from,  94 
Zaghouan,    Mount,    335,    340,    346, 

348,  427;  water  from,  366 
Zella,  ancient,  see  M6hdia 
Zenati,  Oued,  296 
Zeralda,  78 
Ziban,  the,  100 
Zoreba,  tribe  of  the,  100 
Zouaves,  180 


[445] 


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